THE  WOOING 
OF  TOKALA 


FPANKLIN  WELLES 


■  i 


INS 


THE  WOOING  OF  TOKALA 


The  Wooing  of  Tokala 

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An  extraordinary  book  of  Indian  life 
as  the  Indian  lives  it.  Mr.  Calkins  has 
lived  with  the  Indians  as  a  friend  and 
as  one  of  them.  He  knows  tribal  feel- 
ing and  the  depths  of  the  savage  char- 
acter good  and  bad.  Added  to  this  the 
gift  of  the  reconteur  and  you  have  a 
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Two  Wilderness  Voyagers 

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with  truth  all  the  poetry  of  primitiveness 
and  all  the  ore  of  the  natural  Indian." 
— Brookly?i  Eagle. 

My  Host  the  Enemy 

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FLEMING  H.  RE  VELL  COMPANY 
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The  IVooing  of  Tokala 


An  Intimate  Tale  of  the  Wild 
Life  of  the  American  Indian 
Drawn  from  Camp  and  Trail 


By 
FRANKLIN  WELLES  CALKINS 

Author  of  "  Two  Wilderness  Voyagers" 
and  "  My  Host,  the  Enemy  " 


New    York  Chicago  Toronto 

FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 

London      and      Edinburgh 


Copyright,  1907,  by 
FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 

Dramatic  Rights  Reserved 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  80  Wabash  Avenue 
Toronto:  25  Richmond  Street,  W. 
London:  21  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:      100    Princes    Street 


To  those  who  love  justice  and  whose  search 
is  after  truth.  To  those >  in  fact \  who  have 
passed  out  from  the  red  lights  of  war's 
heritage  to  attain  the  clear  vision  of  men , 
this  book  is  dedicated  by  one  who  knows 
the  native  race,  at  least  as  well  as  he 
does   the   men   and    women   of  his   own. 


M701519 


CONTENTS 


I. 

The  Brule  Dancer 

9 

II. 

The  Flight      . 

32 

III. 

The  Test         . 

39 

IV. 

When  Greek  Meets  Greek 

47 

V. 

The  Gathering  of  the  Clans   . 

68 

VI. 

Home  Life        . 

75 

VII. 

An  Indian  Wooing  . 

87 

VIII. 

HOW   HOSTILES   WERE   MaDE 

97 

IX. 

Cloud  Chief  on  Guard     . 

120 

X. 

Origin  of  a  Sun-Dance     . 

129 

XI. 

Preliminary  Amusements  . 

144 

XII. 

Love's  Perplexities  . 

156 

XIII. 

The  Famous  Warrior 

168 

XIV 

A  Family  Council    . 

179 

XV. 

The  Sun  Dance 

191 

XVI. 

Dance  of  the  Strong  Men 

200 

XVII. 

The  Bitterness  of  Success 

208 

XVIII. 

A  Broken  Truce 

220 

XIX. 

In  Cloud  Chief's  Lodge   . 

238 

XX. 

Wings  of  Morning  . 

248 

XXI. 

An  Evil  Wooing 

256 

XXII. 

Tokala's  Lone  Trail 

265 

XXIII. 

Whom  the  Gods  Love 

.     283 

XXIV. 

Maid  and  Missionary 

.     298 

XXV. 

At  the  War  Camp   . 

■     3i5 

XXVI. 

The  Test  of  Combat 

•     33° 

THE    BRULE    DANCER 

AT  an  Oglala  buffalo  village  the  figure  of 
chief  interest,  passing  the  teepee  doors,  was 
not  that  of  Red  Cloud  nor  of  Yellow-Iron, 
but  that  of  Koska,  the  Brule  dancer.  This  young 
man  lived  at  the  Missouri  River,  where  his  father  was 
wealthy,  owning  many  horses  which  he  had  stolen 
from  the  Scili  or  Pawnees. 

Koska  was  able  to  dance  the  muscle  dance,  and  as 
he  danced  he  shook  a  bull  rattle  and  jingled  the  bells 
upon  his  ankles  so  that  people  said  he  made  very 
fine  music  indeed. 

Koska's  voice  was  wonderful,  a  great  mystery  gift. 
When  he  shouted  at  the  pony  races  or  in  the  ball 
games  it  was  as  if  Wakinyan,  the  Thunder  God, 
were  speaking.  At  times  when  this  young  man  was 
talking  his  words  were  very  mysterious ;  for  it  ap- 
peared that  some  one  spoke  in  the  air  above  his 
head  or  from  the  ground  at  his  feet.  No  one  could 
tell  where  his  words  came  from.     People  were  as- 

9 


10  THE    BRULfi    DANCER 

tonished  and,  at  such  times,  Koska  became  em- 
barrassed and  would  cease  speaking.  The  people 
wondered — it  was  very  mysterious.  "  It  is  taku- 
wakan,  something  wonderful,"  they  said,  "  the  voice 
of  Koska !  " 

Because  of  Tokala  Noni,  daughter  of  the  Chief 
Yellow-Iron,  Koska  had  gone  with  the  Oglalas  to 
Medicine  Dance  Buttes,  whither  they  had  moved  for 
the  annual  buffalo  hunting.  During  two  moons  the 
Brule  had  been  the  guest  of  Running  Antelope. 
Though  he  had  made  his  preference  for  the  maiden 
openly  known  Tokala  Noni  had  shown  him  no  favour. 

Several  times  each  day  he  walked  to  and  fro  passing 
the  teepee  of  Yellow-Iron.  Dressed  in  the  bravery 
of  a  Sioux  gallant,  he  had  often  waited  beside  a 
coulee  water  path.  But  the  maiden  had  failed  to 
smile  on  him  from  the  teepee  doorway,  and  she  only 
fetched  water  in  the  company  of  other  girls,  or  of  the 
women  of  her  family. 

Sometimes  the  teasing  ones  would  say  to  Tokala 
Noni,  "  See  him,  this  pretty  Brule  with  the  strange 
voice ;  he  indeed  wishes  to  speak  with  you ! "  On 
such  occasions  Tokala  would  draw  her  blanket  more 
closely  about  her  head  or  turn  her  face  away,  ignor- 
ing the  remark  and  the  cause  of  it. 

Yellow-Iron  and  his  wife  had  secretly  been  pleased 
that    Koska   was    looking    toward    their   daughter. 


THE    BRULE    DANCER  11 

Having  allowed  for  the  natural  reserve  of  a  Dakota 
maiden  they  began,  also  secretly,  to  feel  some  im- 
patience. Tokala  Noni  was  good  to  look  upon. 
She  might  choose  her  teepee  among  the  Oglalas; 
but  there  was  no  young  man  among  these,  not  even 
the  son  of  Spotted  Tail,  who  could  give,  without 
impoverishing  himself,  a  great  number  of  ponies  to 
his  wife's  relatives.  Yet  the  father  and  mother  could 
say  nothing,  nor  appear  to  notice  the  Brule's  ap- 
parent courtship,  until  himself  should  speak  openly. 

It  was  at  the  beginning  of  the  dry-grass  moon 
that  Koska  signified  his  desire  to  marry  Tokala 
Noni.  He  spoke  to  an  Oglala  friend,  who  carried 
his  message  to  a  friend  of  Yellow-Iron.  After  this 
the  chief  talked  to  his  wife  about  the  matter. 

When  the  two  were  alone  one  day  the  Buffalo 
Woman  spoke  to  her  daughter.  "  Thus,"  she  said, 
"  we  have  heard  it  said  that  Koska  wishes  to  speak 
with  you  and  it  is  good  that  you  do  not  avoid  this 
young  man." 

And  Tokala  knew  that  she  must  give  an  answer 
or  be  spoken  of  as  a  stubborn  and  perverse  daughter, 
a  trial  to  her  parents.  She  had  the  strong  pride  of 
her  race,  wishing  to  appear  to  advantage.  Her  little 
barbaric  heart  was  sorely  tried.  She  sat  upon  a  rush 
mat  in  her  own  corner  of  the  teepee,  and  she  drew 
her  blanket  about  her  head  and  wept  bitterly. 


12  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

"  Is  this  young  man  so  poor  then  that  you  despise 
him  ?  "  asked  the  troubled  mother. 

The  girl  mingled  reproaches  with  her  sobs.  "  It 
is  thus,  all  the  time,"  she  wailed,  "  you — and  the 
others — you  indeed  wish  me  to  choose  a  man — who 
is  possessed  of  an  evil  spirit !  " 

The  Buffalo  Woman  paused  in  the  work  she  was 
doing  and  stared  at  her  daughter  in  astonishment. 
All  the  occult  forces,  so  potent  with  the  child  of 
nature,  stirred  within  her.  Now  she  suddenly  re- 
membered things.  She  began  to  put  this  and  that 
together.  She  saw  that  her  daughter  had,  for  a  long 
time,  acted  strangely — she  had  been  silent  when  she 
should  have  spoken — she  had  shown  a  sober  face 
when  others  laughed  and  now  she  wept  when  an- 
other girl  would  have  been  proud  and  pleased,  how- 
ever much  she  might  wish  to  conceal  the  fact.  Such 
conduct  had  hitherto  been  unheard  of  and,  being 
unnatural,  was  mysterious  and  matter  for  apprehen- 
sion until  it  might  be  understood. 

In  silence  the  Buffalo  Woman  passed  out  of  her 
teepee.  Troubled  at  heart  she  went  to  the  lodge 
of  a  medicine  woman,  who  was  the  grandmother  of 
medicine  priests.  This  aged  and  very  wise  woman 
was  known  to  have  had  communication  with  spirits 
of  the  upper  and  under  worlds  and  with  those  of 
birds    and    beasts.     By   these   tokens   she   foretold 


THE    BRULE    DANCER  13 

events  and  divined  the  presence  and  occult  manifes- 
tations of  the  evil  ones. 

To  this  medicine-god-woman  Buffalo  Woman  told 
of  her  talk  with  Tokala  Noni,  and  all  that  her 
daughter  had  said.  This  wise  woman  sat  for  a  time 
in  silence.  She  lighted  her  mystery  pipe  and  blew 
smoke  alternately  from  either  thin  nostril.  After  a 
time  she  spoke. 

"  During  two  moons,"  she  said,  "  I  have  observed 
this  young  man  of  the  Brules.  It  appears  to  me 
that  he  speaks  with  the  black  wolf's  voice,  but  I  do 
not  yet  know  that  this  is  certainly  true.  If  it  be 
true,  it  is  an  evil  thing.  Go  to,  my  daughter,  I  will 
discover  about  this.  To-night  our  young  men  dance 
to  Wimima  (the  full  moon),  and  I  think  something 
mysterious  is  desiring  to  speak  truth  to  the  Oglalas. 
Go  now  to  your  teepee,  daughter,  and  do  not  plague 
my  granddaughter  further  in  this  matter." 

Buffalo  Woman  returned  to  her  lodge.  Stricken 
with  the  fear  of  mysterious  things,  she  felt  very  sure 
that  her  daughter  had  been  evilly  besieged.  She  de- 
sired now  to  comfort  Tokala  and  so  she  said,  wishing 
to  calm  the  girl's  fears : 

"  Cease  to  weep,  my  daughter.  I  have  spoken 
with  the  wise  one  and  it  does  not  now  appear  that 
your  father  will  wish  to  give  you  to  this  good-for- 
nothing  Brule." 


14  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

Tokala  looked  at  her  mother  in  amazement.  "  He 
is  a  very  good  young  man,"  she  replied  with  heat, 
"  but  he  is  unfortunate.  He  does  not  wish  to  speak 
always  thus — in  a  strange  voice."  Whereat  her 
mother  marvelled  much  but  said  nothing. 

At  the  going  down  of  the  sun  mystery  men  be- 
gan beating  the  huge  elk-skin  drum  of  their  craft. 
Its  heavy,  rhythmic  roll,  thundering  in  the  barbaric 
double  time  of  the  Orient,  could  have  been  heard  far 
out  upon  the  prairie  and  deep  within  the  canons  of 
the  Smoky  River  breaks.  There  was  suppressed 
excitement  among  the  lodges.  The  people  knew 
that  their  young  men  were  to  dance  the  moon  dance. 

Fires  were  kindled  near  the  medicine  pole,  whither 
four  young  men  came  beating  the  drum.  These 
seated  themselves  cross-legged  and,  as  they  wielded 
their  sticks,  they  chanted  the  wi-mimbe  song. 

The  people  gathered ;  their  faces  were  lighted 
with  excited  interest  and  expectation.  They  formed 
in  groups  and  squatted  upon  the  ground,  the  young 
within  the  circle  of  their  elders.  Boys  brought 
bundles  of  fagots  for  the  fires.  Then  the  dancers 
came  by  ones  and  twos  from  their  teepees.  The 
drum  beat  high  and  the  maze  of  the  moon  dance 
was  on. 

Each  dancer  was  arrayed  in  such  individual  and 
fantastic  costume  as  the  wild  rider  of  the  plains  was 


THE    BRULE    DANCER  15 

able  to  achieve.  Twoscore  of  them,  whirling  about 
the  mystery  pole,  made  a  brave  and  exhilarating  show. 
They  danced  in  impossible  postures  and,  as  they 
shuffled  and  leaped,  they  chanted  the  song  of  their 
dance  in  weird  and  minor  cadences  which  penetrated 
to  all  the  recesses  of  the  barbaric  soul. 

As  the  sun  fell  under  the  earth  and  the  world  of 
night  came  on  from  the  east  fires  were  piled  high 
and  their  red  glow  filtered  a  magic  and  potent  medi-» 
cine  for  the  dancers.  They  sang  to  Wakinyan,  god 
of  thunders,  chanting  prayers  for  vigour  of  heart  and 
strength  of  limb  to  endure. 

Koska,  naked  to  the  breech-cloth,  danced  the  en- 
trancing muscle  dance.  His  face  was  turned  up- 
ward ;  his  eyes,  showing  the  under  whites,  were  fixed 
upon  some  absorbing  vision  of  the  upper  world. 
Every  muscle  of  his  strong,  lithe  body  played  in 
complex,  sinuous  movement,  astonishing  for  freedom 
of  action ;  and  the  tiny  bells  and  spangles  upon  his 
leggins  and  his  moccasin  heels  shook  out  music  in 
perfect  keeping  with  that  marvellous  dance  of  the 
flesh. 

The  people  were  amazed.  "  Han  !  Han  !  "  they 
exclaimed,  and  "  Hopidansni  !  Is  it  not  wonderful  ? 
Did  you  ever  see  any  one  dance  thus  ?  " 

The  wise  medicine-god-woman  sat  somewhat  apart 
from  a  group.     For  a  long  time  her  eyes  were  fixed 


16  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

intently  upon  Koska.  Then  she  turned  her  gaze 
downward  and  muttered  under  her  breath.  She  con- 
sulted her  sacred  medicine-bag  which  contained  the 
fetiches  of  her  clan — the  foot  of  a  magpie,  the  dried 
tongue  of  a  screech-owl,  and  a  red,  perforated  stone 
from  the  springs  of  Miniskanskan.  This  medicine- 
bag  was  secreted  beneath  the  folds  of  her  blanket 
and,  when  she  prayed  to  it,  her  eyes  were  turned 
inward.  She  had  also  an  image  of  the  yellow  thun- 
der bird  and  she  prayed  to  this  and  shook  her  medi- 
cine rattle,  calling  upon  the  mysterious  spirits  of 
earth  and  air. 

Presently  the  dance  grew  more  violent.  Koska 
outdid  all  his  former  efforts.  He  believed  that 
Tokala  Noni  must  now  indeed  be  looking  at  him, 
therefore  he  danced  to  her.  His  exertions  went  to 
the  point  of  frenzy.  He  leaped  like  a  stricken  deer 
and  the  noises  which  issued  from  his  throat  were  su- 
perhuman. He  lifted  his  voice  in  a  series  of  strange 
cries  which  rose  above  the  clatter  of  drum,  the  jangle 
of  bells,  and  the  whoops  of  his  fellows,  as  the  notes 
of  a  cornet  quaver  above  the  boom  of  an  orchestra. 
The  people  looked  at  each  other  and  spoke  together 
in  low  voices. 

"  Do  you  hear  ?  "  one  asked  another. 

The  medicine-god-woman  arose  slowly,  leaning 
upon  a  lance  staff.     Her  thin  face,  thrust  forward  in 


THE    BRULE    DANCER  17 

the  firelight,  took  the  shape  of  a  vulture's  beak.  She 
cackled  shrilly. 

"  Hececa  !  Hececa  !  Sunk-sapa !  sunk-sapa  !  " 
she  screamed. 

Her  high-keyed  cachination  reached  the  nearer 
groups  of  onlookers  and  they  understood  that  the 
spirit  of  a  black  wolf  had  entered  the  body  of  Koska. 
Thus  he  danced,  defying  the  laws  of  the  flesh,  and 
thus  he  cried  with  a  voice  not  his  own. 

The  medicine-god-woman  turned  her  face  toward 
her  teepee  and  passed  into  the  unlit  night.  People 
arose  from  the  group  she  had  quitted  and  distributed 
themselves  among  the  crowds  of  onlookers  to  whom 
they  interpreted  the  words  of  the  wise  woman. 

Then,  as  the  Brule  leaped  and  danced,  keeping  his 
gaze  fixed  upon  the  upper  world,  he  was  abandoned. 
Young  and  old,  the  people  arose  and  went  in  silence 
to  their  teepees.  One  by  one  the  dancers  filed  away 
into  the  darkness.  The  tattoo  of  the  drum  ceased, 
and  presently  Koska,  perspiring  and  exhausted, 
found  himself  dancing  to  the  jangle  of  the  bells  upon 
his  leggins. 

When  the  sense  of  gross  perception  in  a  measure 
asserted  itself  the  Brule  stood  amazed  and  stricken 
with  the  awe  of  superstition.  He  threw  a  mop  of 
hair  back  from  his  eyes  and  searched  the  narrow 
circle  of  firelight.     Plainly  there  had  been  a  mani- 


18  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

festation  of  the  Great  Mystery.  Snapping  embers, 
enclosed  in  blank  and  silent  spaces,  replaced  the 
brilliant  flames,  the  leaping  figures,  and  the  throngs 
of  firelit  faces. 

"  Hoh  !  "  muttered  the  Brule, "  Hoh  !  Hoh  !  "  He 
felt  his  flesh  growing  cold ;  a  chill  struck  through  all 
his  body  and  fear  gripped  his  soul.  A  lean  wolf- 
dog  slipped  across  his  narrow  circle  of  lighted  ground 
and  its  teeth  clicked  in  a  vicious  snap  at  his  legs. 
The  man  understood  that  he  had  been  abandoned. 

Somewhere  within  the  blackness,  beyond  the 
glimmer  of  teepee  tops,  he  felt  the  eyes  of  the  medi- 
cine-god-woman upon  him.  Creeping,  chilly  pains 
searched  his  vitals.  He  squatted  low  over  a  heap  of 
live  coals.  Over  this  fire,  sacred  to  Wimima,  he 
prayed.  He  turned  his  face  to  the  spirits  of  the 
upper  world  and  saw  strange  things.  He  saw  stars 
dancing  and  the  winged  sweep  of  thunder  birds  in 
their  midst.  He  prayed  to  these  people  to  have  pity 
upon  him  ;  and,  after  a  time,  he  arose  strengthened  in 
limb  and  spirit.  He  walked  to  his  teepee,  striking  at 
the  dogs  which  snapped  at  his  heels. 

He  entered  his  lodge — beside  that  of  Running 
Antelope — and  took  therefrom  his  blankets,  bow 
and  arrows,  saddle  and  trappings.  Then,  walking 
very  straight  with  his  burden,  he  went  out  among  the 
pony  herds.     He  returned  through  the  village,  lead- 


THE    BRULfi    DANCER  19 

ing  a  string  of  horses  which  he  tethered — save  one — 
in  front  of  Yellow-Iron's  teepee. 

"  My  heart  is  good,"  he  muttered.  "  My  heart  is 
good." 

Leading  his  saddle  pony  he  trod  slowly  a  canon 
path  which  mounted  to  the  far  heights  of  the  river 
breaks.  He  shivered  now  and  then  and  his  pony 
turned  its  head  frequently  to  launch  an  inquiring 
whinny  into  the  valley. 

Koska  had  advanced  some  bow-shots  amid  the 
deep  shadows  when  suddenly  the  figure  of  a  person 
stood  in  his  path,  a  small,  slim  person,  so  dimly  out- 
lined that  the  Brule  halted,  at  some  steps,  deeming 
that  he  saw  one  of  the  shadow  people  of  the  mys- 
terious world.  He  stood  at  gaze  and  was  convinced. 
He  began  to  pray  to  this  mysterious  one. 

"  Listen,  hear  me,"  he  said,  "  you  that  are  of  the 
ghost  world.  Have  great  pity  upon  me  that  people 
may  not  any  more  turn  their  faces  away  from  me." 

There  was  a  birdlike  swoop  of  movement  which 
did  not  startle,  but  interrupted,  and  a  Dakota  maiden 
stood  beside  the  speaker.  She  let  her  blanket  drop 
from  face  to  shoulders. 

"  Pray  not  to  me,"  she  said.  "  It  is  I,  Tokala 
Noni."     Her  voice  was  soft  and  low  and  pitiful. 

"  My  friend,"  said  the  Brule,  "  now  I  indeed  know 
that  you  have  a  soft  heart.     After  all  you  do  not 


20  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

shun  me.  I  have  left  ponies  with  Yellow-Iron.  Is 
it  good  ?  " 

"  They  will  not  that  I  should  dwell  in  your  teepee/' 
murmured  the  maid, "  therefore  I  have  come  to  speak 
with  you.  Thus,  you  should  take  away  your  ponies 
that  I  may  not  have  shame." 

"  What  I  have  done  I  have  done,"  Koska  made 
answer.  He  opened  the  folds  of  his  blanket  and,  for 
a  moment,  the  maiden  stood  with  face  against  his 
breast.  Then  she  gently  put  him  away  and  passed 
quickly  from  his  sight. 

The  Brule  looked  long  into  the  blank  spaces 
whither  she  had  vanished.  His  horse  nickered  plain- 
tively. The  young  man  caught  his  breath  in  a  deep 
sigh  and  again  took  up  the  canon  trail.  After 
threading  dark  and  laborious  mazes  he  came  to  the 
level  of  the  breaks  and  was  projected  into  the  upper 
world  where  a  vast,  misshapen  ball  of  red  fire  was  be- 
ginning to  heave  itself  out  of  the  earth.  This  was 
Wimima,  the  dry-grass  moon,  which  the  mice  were 
beginning  to  gnaw. 

Koska  prayed  to  this  moon,  which  is  wife  to  the 
sun,  and  therefore  a  powerful  person. 

"  Ohe,  ohe,  Wemima-sa  !  Hear  me,  red,  red  moon  ! 
Listen,  O  woman  of  the  sky.  I  desire  greatly  that 
the  people  shall  not  turn  their  faces  away  from  me. 
Hear  me,  pity  me,  and  I  shall  thereafter  do  your 


THE    BRULfi   DANCER  21 

will.  Thirty  pieces  of  my  skin  I  shall  cut  from  my 
arms  and  breast  when  I  am  arrived  among  them 
peacefully." 

Even  as  he  spoke,  Wimima  heaved  herself  to  a 
sitting  posture  upon  the  black  rim  of  eastern  horizon. 
Her  vast,  broad  disk  filled  a  greater  angle  than  the 
near-by  Butte  of  the  Porcupine. 

As  Koska  gazed  in  awed  amazement,  lo  a  wonder 
happened.  A  horseman  appeared  in  sharp  silhouette, 
riding  upon  the  face  of  the  moon.  This  celestial 
rider,  whose  horse  appeared  to  have  no  legs,  was  fol- 
lowed by  another  and  another.  A  crowding  host 
blackened  Wimima's  face  until,  quite  suddenly,  she 
lifted  her  round  disk  and  sank  them  into  the  spaces 
of  the  under  world.  Long  the  Brule  stood  staring  at 
the  broad,  clear  moon.  "  Hoh ! "  he  exclaimed, 
"  Hoh-hoh  !     Hoh  !  " 

Then,  in  mazy  bewilderment  of  brain,  he  led  his 
reluctant  pony  along  the  black  rim  of  the  breaks. 
At  the  head  of  a  deep  gorge  he  paused  for  a  moment 
to  gaze  again,  and  fearfully,  at  that  broad  red  moon, 
hanging  low  over  the  earth.  Seeing  no  more  of  the 
mysterious  horsemen,  he  descended  into  the  canon. 

Deep  within  the  shelter  of  a  ledge  he  made  fast  his 
horse  and  sat  upon  the  ground  to  meditate.  A 
slight  breeze  rustled  the  boughs  of  the  pinons.  In 
the  depths   of  the  canon  an  owl  hooted,  "  Hu-hu ! 


22  THE    BRUL£    DANCER 

Ahoo-ahu-hu  !  "  Thus  hinhan  spoke  and  the  Brule 
listened  intently.  "  Ahoo-ahu-hu  !  "  vociferated  the 
owl.  Upon  the  heights  a  coyote  answered,  yapping 
dolorously  at  the  red-faced  moon. 

What  were  these  mysterious  ones  saying  ?  These 
people  of  the  earth  and  mid-air  were  certainly  speak- 
ing to  him,  Koska.  They  were  plainly  calling  to 
him,  for  they  never  spoke  thus  save  to  convey  infor- 
mation to  their  brothers  of  the  brown  skin. 

As  the  moon  rose  higher  her  light  filtered  into  the 
canon's  upper  depths  touching  the  pinon  tops.  A 
magpie  stirred,  chattering  with  affright  as  its  white 
wings  flashed  across  a  lighted  space,  and  a  blue  jay 
shrieked  as,  in  the  hushed  swoop  of  an  owl,  a  spectre 
of  death  confronted  its  perch.  A  patter  of  light  foot- 
falls told  also  of  the  flight  of  manstin,  the  rabbit. 
Wraiths  of  things  that  hunt  and  are  hunted  flitted 
across  the  moonlit  areas. 

As  these  things  befell,  the  Brule  sat  and  pondered 
heavily.  Wimima  rode  high  until  her  pale  and  or- 
dinary face  looked  down  upon  the  canon's  trail  of 
sand,  and  she  traced  ugly  shadows  upon  the  opposing 
scarps. 

Koska  saw,  as  in  a  dream,  the  ghosts  of  things 
moving  among  the  scattered  pines.  He  muttered 
semi-conscious  prayers  and  his  petitions  were  ad- 
dressed to  the  ghosts  of  things. 


THE    BRULE    DANCER  23 

Thus  he  sat  until  the  moon  had  slanted  westward, 
and  the  shadow  of  cliffs  fell  upon  the  scarp  in  her 
front.  He  had  not  stirred,  though  his  horse  had,  now 
and  then,  lifted  its  voice  in  remonstrant  whinnyings, 
after  which  had  followed  the  patter  and  scurry  of 
startled  feet.  The  rising  sun  might  have  found  Koska 
still  entranced,  after  his  high  craze  of  barbaric  emo- 
tions but,  afar  up  the  canon,  there  presently  fell  upon 
his  ears  the  muffled  klop-klop-klop  of  horses'  hoofs — 
klop-klop-klop — unmistakably  the  guarded  clatter  of 
many  hoof-beats. 

The  Brule  arose,  stiffened  and  alert,  and  stood  in  a 
listening  attitude.  He  had  shed  the  spell  of  conjured 
obsession  as  an  alarmed  sleeper  flings  aside  his 
blanket.  The  stirring  of  his  horse,  its  pricked  ears 
and  low  nicker  of  inquiry,  gave  instant  testimony  to 
his  attitude.  He  stepped  forward  and,  with  a  few 
quick  turns  of  its  rawhide  rope,  muzzled  the  animal's 
jaws.  Again  he  held  his  ear  to  the  canon's  depths. 
Nothing  was  heard  save  the  pit-pat  of  small  feet  upon 
the  pine  needles.  He  advanced  cautiously  along  the 
scarp  until  he  stood  upon  a  rim  of  the  ledge  which, 
like  a  broken  battlement,  loomed  upon  the  slant, 
semi-illumined  shadows  of  the  gorge. 

Between  two  jagged  projections,  leaning  forward 
and  clinging  to  the  rock  ledges  with  his  hands,  Koska 
peered  steadily  down   upon  a  dim  thread  of  sand 


24  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

which  marked  the  canon's  bottom.  Thus  bent  he 
stood  so  motionless  that  the  slant  feathers  upon  his 
scalp-lock  gave  the  appearance  of  a  perched  bird  and 
a  passing  owl  swooped,  with  a  scared  flop  of  discov- 
ery, at  the  point  of  attack. 

The  moon  swung  from  behind  a  near  butte,  letting 
fall  her  light  at  a  new  angle,  and  slowly — for  a  little 
way — the  sandy  thread  of  the  canon's  dry  run  was  il- 
lumined. The  Brule  sank  upon  his  breast  and  lay 
upon  a  flat  rim  of  rock,  head  downward,  peering  and 
listening.  After  a  time  his  alert  watchfulness  was 
rewarded.  Amid  the  upper  glooms  of  the  canon's 
depths  some  figures  appeared,  dimly,  and  others  came 
on,  riding  carefully  that  hoofs  should  fall  in  the  sand. 
Hah !  Akicitapi !  Soldiers  !  soldiers  of  the  Great 
Father  !  The  last  glimmer  of  fog  lifted  from  Koska's 
brain.  He  saw  as  the  owl  sees.  So,  these  blue  legs, 
these  squad  hunters,  who  dared  not  go  out  singly  to 
shoot  at  a  buffalo  bull,  these  pitiable  liars  and  con- 
sumers of  crazy  waters,  would  strike  at  an  Oglala 
village.  As  usual  they  wished  to  kill  some  women 
and  children. 

Files  of  horsemen  advanced  slowly  until  the  fore- 
most had  reached  a  widened  strip  of  sand  bed,  nearly 
opposite  the  water.  Then  a  low  "  Halt  "  was  sounded 
and  the  columns  came  to  a  stand. 

The  moon  had  again  swung  around  so  that  its  light 


THE    BRUL£    DANCER  25 

fell  to  the  canon's  bottom.  Ominous  of  evil  intent 
the  watcher  saw  four  advance  riders  come  together 
in  a  group.  These  talked  in  low  tones  that  reached 
the  Brule's  ear  as  a  murmur  from  the  under  world. 

Koska  crept  from  his  perch  with  the  stealth  of  a 
cougar.  Inch  by  inch  he  crawled  away  until  he 
could,  with  safety,  stand  upright ;  then  he  climbed 
swiftly  and  softly  steeps  and  pihon-clad  scarps  till  he 
reached  the  prairie  levels.  Upon  these  heights  he 
ran  as  the  coyote  runs  until,  from  the  topmost,  he 
could  look  down  upon  the  black  pockets  and  lighted 
patches  of  the  canons  and,  through  a  wide  gap,  out 
upon  the  moonlit  plain  beyond  the  Sioux  village. 

****** 

The  long  files  of  two  cavalry  troops  waited  in 
silence,  in  that  state  of  divers  emotions  or  lack  of 
them,  which  precedes  the  supreme  moment  of  assault. 
At  the  head  of  the  column  a  major,  his  aides  and 
two  scouts,  sitting  a-saddle  with  their  horses'  heads 
near  together,  held  a  muttered  consultation. 

Dog  Soldiers,  inveterate  hostiles  of  the  Sioux  and 
Cheyennes,  had  recently  raided  the  overland  trail 
and  incidentally  the  government  horse  herds  at  Fort 
Laramie.  These  had  led  the  pursuing  troops  a  hot 
chase  to  northward  and  then,  at  an  opportune  mo- 
ment, had  scattered  leaving  no  trace.     But  the  chase 


26  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

had  resulted  in  accidental  discovery  of  Yellow-Iron's 
village  of  Oglalas  and  the  soldiers  of  the  Great 
Father  did  not  know  one  Sioux  from  another. 

The  situation  of  this  big  village  on  the  flats  of  the 
Smoky  River,  close  to  covert  of  several  canon  trails, 
offered  peculiar  facilities  for  the  Custer  mode  of  attack. 

Possibly  a  Pawnee  scout  could  have  given  a  reason 
for  the  exposed  position  and  secure  quiescence  of  this 
Dakota  town;  possibly  if  all  Sioux  had  not  been 
hereditary  enemies  of  his  tribe  his  information  would 
not  have  implicated  Yellow-Iron's  band.  It  is  also 
even  probable  that  the  white  scout  of  this  expedition 
— stolid,  taciturn  skinner  of  buffaloes — withheld  his 
opinion  as  to  why  the  columns  had  been  able  to  ap- 
proach a  Smoky  River  village  without  discovery.  The 
man  believed  honestly  that  the  only  good  Indians 
were  dead  ones. 

Be  this  as  it  may  a  conference  at  the  column's 
head  resulted  in  a  delay  of  thirty  minutes.  The 
officers  remained  in  saddle,  with  horses'  heads 
bunched,  and  they  muttered  jocular  remarks  to  each 
other,  protected  from  hearing  by  the  soughing  pines 
overhead.  The  privates  sat  in  complete  silence,  most 
of  them  vigorously  chewing  tobacco. 

The  voices  of  the  canon  were  silenced  by  their 
presence  until  there  broke  upon  the  column's  ears  a 
quavering,  high-keyed  cry  which  stiffened  each  man 


THE    BRULfi    DANCER  27 

in  his  stirrups.  The  sound  was  repeated  in  various 
keys  and  rose  and  fell  in  a  series  of  nerve  compelling 
wails,  unmistakably  human,  yet  not  unlike  the  ear- 
filling  miauls  of  a  mountain  lion.  Beyond  doubt  this 
unearthly  music  had  its  origin  near  the  crest  of  a 
butte  which  loomed  above  the  breaks  alongside  the 
slanting  moon.  The  eyes  of  officers  and  men  were 
turned  in  that  direction. 

The  major  pushed  his  horse  close  alongside  that 
of  his  Pawnee  scout.  "  How,  John  ?  "  he  queried  just 
above  his  breath  and  the  strange  cries  answered, 
dropping  from  the  heights  in  quavering  wails  which 
were  echoed  eerily  from  rock  to  rock  and  scarp  to 
scarp  of  the  canon. 

The  Pawnee  sat  with  eyes  aslant  upon  the  butte. 
"  Huh  !  "  he  grunted  at  length,  "  squaw  heap  holler. 
Becher  life  somebody  pretty dead,  I  guess." 

"  Right  he  is,"  affirmed  the  buffalo  scout,  "  correct 
as  hell." 

"  Can  you  make  out  what  she's  singing  about  ?  " 
asked  the  officer  with  anxiety. 

"  Naw,"  muttered  the  white  scout.  "  I  can  savvy 
Sioux  talk,  but  this  is  different — she's  singin' — wailin' 
— jest  no  sense  at  all." 

"  John,  can  you  go  up  and  get  her,  fetch  her  down 
muzzled?  No  killing,  mind  you — no  long-haired 
scalp ! " 


28  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

"  Huh  !  "  grunted  the  Pawnee.  Under  the  flicker 
of  moonlight  his  teeth  gleamed  across  his  face.  He 
stripped  to  the  breach-clout  and  moccasins  and 
slipped,  a  reminder  of  the  shadow  of  death,  into  the 
mouth  of  the  coulee. 

There  followed  a  long  silence  at  the  canon's  bot- 
tom broken  only  by  the  sighing  pines  and  the  wall- 
er's doleful  music,  which  fitfully  shrilled  off  the  butte, 
by  the  hoots  of  owls  or  the  muffled  tramping  of  an 
uneasy  and  tightly  reined  horse. 

At  the  column's  head  was  much  restlessness  of 
spirit.  The  major  frequently  held  the  face  of  his 
watch  to  the  moon  and  finally  lighted  a  match  under 

cover  of  his  slouch  hat.     What  in was  that 

Pawnee  doing  ?  The  buffalo  scout  was  damned  if  he 
knew.  The  moon  crept  lower — a  full  hour  had  been 
spent  in  waiting  and  the  major  shut  his  watch  with 
a  snap. 

"  We'll  move,"  he  growled,  "  Pawnee  or  no 
Pawnee." 

His  low  order  to  advance  would  have  passed  but, 
in  that  instant,  a  loosened  stone  rattled  over  the  face 
of  the  ledge  and  ricochetted  to  the  canon's  bed, 
throwing  sand  against  his  cavalry  boots.  Further  to 
rearward  another  boulder  dropped  with  a  racket 
which  electrified  the  troopers. 

No  one  spoke.     For  a  space  of  ten  seconds  there 


THE    BRULfi    DANCER  29 

was  the  suspense  of  breathless ness.  Then  above  and 
close  to  the  column's  head  three  or  four  dark  figures 
emerged  upon  a  moonlit  scarp.  These  advanced  a 
few  paces  and  stood  upon  a  flat  rock  twenty  yards 
above  the  major's  group. 

"  How,  cola ! "  the  voice  was  deep,  sepulchral,  non- 
committal. The  buffalo  scout  edged  alongside  his 
officer.  "  We're  corralled,"  he  announced  in  an  even, 
commonplace  tone.  "  Hell !  "  said  the  major.  In- 
stantly the  scout  turned  to  the  newcomers,  but  his 
answer  to  an  Indian  greeting  was  interrupted. 

"  Halt !  Silence  !  "  The  command  rang  sternly 
as  troopers,  seizing  an  inkling  of  the  situation,  began 
to  drift  toward  the  head  of  the  column. 

"  How,  cola ! "  again  the  deep,  harsh  tones,  but 
with  a  ring  of  resonance.  "  How,  cola  !  "  responded 
the  scout  and,  in  the  Sioux  tongue,  he  asked  :  "  Who 
are  you  ?  " 

The  answer  was  drawn  to  some  length  and  its  un- 
intelligible accents  smote  upon  the  troopers'  ears  with 
a  ring  of  premonition.  At  its  conclusion  the  scout 
swore  with  a  gentle  vehemence,  surprising  for  un- 
wonted display  of  emotion.  When  he  had  found  ut- 
terance in  common  speech  he  said : 

"  It's  Yellow-Iron,  major,  an'  he  wants  uncommon 
bad  to  know  what  troops  are  doin'  here  an',"  he  added 
in  the  same  even,  interpretative  tone,  "  he's  corralled 


30  THE    BRULE    DANCER 

us  here  on  both  sides  like  buf'loes  in  a  surround — 
we're  bull  beef  if  he  lifts  a  finger." 

The  major  reflected,  while  those  nearest  him  sat  in 
gaping  silence.  As  an .  officer  he  suddenly  saw  his 
chance  for  glory  and  promotion  in  a  narrowed  per- 
spective. He  had  not  come  out  to  fight  like  a  wolf 
in  a  trap. 

"  Tell  chief  Yellow-Iron  he's  off  his  reservation," 
he  instructed  without  committing  himself.  The  scout 
rendered  this  information  for  the  Sioux's  benefit. 

"  We  are  here  for  the  buffalo  killing,"  was  the  reply. 
"  We  have  that  right  by  treaty  with  the  Great  Father." 

The  scout  interpreted. 

"  Tell  Yellow-Iron,"  said  the  major  sternly,  "  that 
his  young  men  have  been  killing  people,  not  buffaloes, 
on  the  Platte." 

A  brief  dialogue  in  the  Sioux  followed. 

"  The  d d  old  hair-lifter  says  you're  a  liar,  and 

your  father  was  a  liar  before  yeh — all  white  men  are 
liars,"  interpreted  the  scout. 

The  major  laughed  grimly.  "  He  has  the  best  of 
the  argument,"  he  remarked. 

"  Egsackly,"  admitted  the  scout. 

"  And  men  to  the  good." 

"  He  holds  four  aces " 

"  And  has  the  drop — I  see,"  mused  the  major. 
u  Well,  tell  Mr.  Yellow-Iron  we're  glad  to  find  good 


THE    BRULE    DANCER  31 

Indians  at  Smoky  River  and  will  be  glad  of  his  help 
in  trailing  those  Dog  Soldiers  who  did  the  killing." 
"  Good,"  said  Yellow-Iron  in  reply.  "  Tell  your 
big  general  he  will  find  those  Dog  Soldiers  going 
toward  the  Bad  Lands.  I  will  send  five  scouts  with 
him.     Doubtless  these  will  recover  his  horses." 


II 

THE   FLIGHT 

MANY  birds  of  ill  omen  were  seen  flying 
above  the  Butte  of  the  Porcupine.  These 
hovered  there  during  the  early  hours, 
often  alighted  and  again  soared  aloft.  At  midday 
a  cloud  of  them,  sombre,  silent,  evil,  sailed  the  blue 
ether  circling  high  above  the  Sioux  village.  Under 
the  noonday  sun  their  shadows  moved  among  the 
teepees  and  many  of  the  people  withdrew  into  their 
lodges. 

"  These  evil  ones  are  indeed  too  plentiful,"  mut- 
tered the  elders.  "  These  should  not  have  appeared 
until  after  the  buffalo  killing."  Those  outside  the 
teepees,  of  any  necessity,  moved  frequently  lest  the 
shadows  of  the  carrion  eaters  should  fall  on  them. 

"  It  is  because  of  the  white  soldiers ; "  said  the  med- 
icine-god-woman, "  these  will  yet  destroy  us  if  we  do 
not  move  away  from  here  secretly.  Because  of  these 
woman  killers,  also,  the  buffaloes  do  not  come  hither 
as  formerly.  Can  any  one  now  go  to  the  sacred  hill 
and  call  the  buffaloes  ?  Lo,  there  is  much  sweet 
grass  to  make  medicine  smoke  and  our  callers  have 

32 


THE    FLIGHT  33 

burned  this  upon  the  hills  and  sung  the  sacred  songs 
and  the  buffaloes  do  not  come." 

Her  words  were  repeated  to  Red  Cloud  and  Yel- 
low-Iron, and  the  head  men  were  called  together  in 
council.     An  aged  chief  spoke  first. 

"  Listen,"  he  said,  "  it  is  now  three  snows  since  the 
buffaloes  came  from  the  south,  and  this  is  because  the 
white  people  have  made  a  road  which  the  buffaloes 
will  not  cross." 

"  Lo,  my  brothers,"  said  Yellow-Iron,  "  I  think 
that  there  is  truth  in  this  report.  Even  I  have  heard 
about  this  road  which  the  buffaloes  do  not  cross,  but 
I  think  it  is  because  the  white  hunters  turn  them 
back.  These  have  a  more  powerful  medicine  than 
we,  therefore  the  buffaloes  are  called  to  them.  I  think 
that  we  should  now  seek  the  elk  in  the  country  of  the 
Scili.  Behold,  we  are  a  large  company  and  need  not 
to  fear  the  Pawnees." 

A  number  spoke  coinciding  with  what  had  been 
said  or  offering  opinions  in  opposition.  Some  were 
for  going  north  ;  others  wished  to  push  on  westward. 
These  last  were  of  the  younger  leaders  who  spoke  , 
with  eagerness  and  enthusiasm  of  a  great  hill  coun- 
try which  the  tribe  had  visited  but  once  or  twice  in 
many  years  and  which  offered  all  the  allurements  of 
an  unexplored  region. 

Red  Cloud  was  the  last  to  speak.     When  this  grave 


34  THE    FLIGHT 

war  chief  arose  there  was  marked  attention. 
"  Listen,"  he  said.  "  In  the  north  there  is  much 
snow,  and  if  we  find  no  buffaloes  we  shall  suffer. 
Seeing  that  our  people  lack  meat  we  cannot  go  to  an 
unknown  country ;  therefore  let  us  go  to  the  touth 
as  far  as  the  Red  River  if  need  be.  There  we  shall 
meet  the  Kiowas  who  are  our  friends  and  who  will 
help  us  to  find  the  buffaloes.  There  we  can  safely  go 
peaceably  with  our  women  and  children  and  the 
white  soldiers  will  not  attack  us  if  we  molest  no  one." 

This  talk  was  emphasized  by  frequent  thumps  upon 
a  war-drum  and  in  the  end  Red  Cloud's  plan  was  ac- 
cepted. None  of  the  grave  counsellors  made  men- 
tion of  the  brooding  fears  which  had  fallen  upon 
their  village. 

Nevertheless  they  broke  camp  after  the  world  of 
night  had  fallen.  Under  the  stars  they  trailed  to  the 
east  so  that,  in  their  southward  journey,  they  might 
avoid  the  raided  trails  of  the  upper  country.  It 
might  be  necessary  to  save  all  appearance  of  offense. 
Since  the  buffaloes  had  not  come  to  them,  they  must 
go  to  the  buffaloes. 

Their  village  had  been  near  to  a  fatal  attack  the 
night  before.  A  mysterious  voice  calling  to  them  in 
the  night,  the  voice  of  one  they  had  cast  out,  had 
saved  them.  They  believed  that  the  Brule  had  been 
killed  and  the  day  had  been  one  of  an  accumulation 


THE    FLIGHT  35 

of  evil    omens.     Along   the  valley   of   the    Smoky 
River  they  trailed  the  travoix. 

The  Buffalo  Woman  and  her  family  rode  in  ad- 
vance. Yellow-Iron  had  given  all  the  ponies  of 
Koska  to  his  wife  and  Tokala,  thus  adding  greatly  to 
the  ease,  comfort  and  importance  of  their  moving. 

As  they  pushed  on  over  the  river  trail  the  caval- 
cade became  scattered.  Fear  departed  from  the  peo- 
ple as  they  drew  further  away  from  their  late  camping 
ground.  The  exhilaration  of  moving  was  upon  them, 
the  joyous  and  hopeful  emotion  of  those  who  go  to 
seek  a  far  country.  And  these,  too,  were  setting 
their  faces  toward  a  land  where  the  grim  ice-god 
battles  vainly  with  the  sun. 

For  hours  they  travelled  untiringly.  Wimima,  the 
full  moon,  was  riding  high  when  Tokala  Noni,  at  the 
tail  of  a  string  of  pack-ponies,  stopped  near  some 
bushes  to  adjust  her  saddle  cloth.  As  she  dis- 
mounted a  man,  who  had  been  riding  at  a  little  dis- 
tance in  her  rear,  also  stopped  and  got  off  his  horse. 
The  girl  noting  this  felt  a  thrill  of  uneasiness.  But 
for  this  one  person  she  was  alone.  She  was  about  to 
climb  upon  her  horse  when  the  man,  closely  muffled 
in  a  blanket,  approached  her. 

Then,  as  the  girl  sought  to  leap  upon  her  pony,  the 
animal  shied  and  she  turned  to  face  the  man  who  had 
come  very  near.     She  laid  a  hand  upon  her  knife. 


36  THE    FLIGHT 

"  My  friend,  do  not  fear  me,"  said  the  muffled  one 
in  a  voice  which  she  instantly  recognized  as  the 
Brule's. 

"  Is  it  indeed  you  ? "  she  asked  in  glad  amaze- 
ment. "  A  dream  told  our  people  that  you  had  met 
the  enemy  ;  it  is  good  that  the  evil  birds  have  spoken 
falsely." 

"  The  birds  have  eaten  the  flesh  of  a  dog  of  the 
Pawnees  ;  "  said  Koska  proudly,  "  therefore  they  have 
lied.  Come  hither  where  none  may  see  us  talking. 
I  wish  to  speak  with  you." 

They  stepped  into  cover  of  the  bushes  where  they 
stood,  each  holding  a  horse. 

"  When  I  saw  your  village  moving  away,"  said  the 
Brule,  "  I  wished  to  inquire  whither  you  were  going. 
To  the  others  I  might  not  speak  until  I  had  proved 
myself." 

"  You  saved  our  people  from  attack  of  the  white 
ones,"  said  Tokala,  sadly,  "  yet  they  do  not  men- 
tion your  name.  You  must  speak  quickly  for  some 
one  will  come  to  look  for  me.     What  would  you  ?  " 

u  I  wish  you  not  to  give  yourself  to  any  man,"  re- 
plied Koska,  "  till  I  shall  come  among  your  people 
with  honour.  I  go  to  take  horses  and  scalps  of  the 
Susuni." 

For  a  moment  the  maiden  stood  in  silence.  Her 
face  was  bent  low  and  her  figure  drooped  slightly 


THE    FLIGHT  37 

toward  the  man  at  her  side.  The  near  beat  of 
horses'  hoofs  startled  her  and  she  leaped  upon  her 
pony.  Then,  bending  toward  her  lover,  she  spoke 
in  a  voice  low  and  soft,  sweet  as  the  murmured  coo- 
ing of  a  dove. 

"  I  am  but  a  young  girl,"  she  said,  "  and  who  shall 
decide  who  will  take  me  to  dwell  in  his  teepee? 
Doubtless  our  people  will  give  you  much  honour 
when  you  shall  come  among  them  fetching  many 
horses  and  scalps ;  but  miye,  I  am  not  of  those  who 
love  war.  I  do  not  think  there  are  evil  birds  talking 
among  the  Brules.  My  friend,  you  have  need  of  the 
bold  heart." 

Like  the  music  of  a  rippling  brook,  but  with  a  cur- 
rent of  deep  and  thrilling  import,  this  low-voiced  talk 
fell  upon  the  ear  of  Koska.  The  prize  of  a  wife  by 
capture  was  surely  awaiting  did  he  choose  to  leap  at 
the  advantage.  He  stood  with  clenched  teeth  and  a 
heart  thumping  at  his  ribs  and  roaring  in  his  ears  as 
loudly  as  the  beat  of  a  tom-tom. 

For  a  moment  there  was  a  fierce  struggle  between 
love  and  ambition,  fiercer  than  any  the  civilized  heart 
can  conceive  of,  between  the  desire  to  possess  and 
the  barbaric  pride  of  a  warrior. 

The  Brule  had  been  cast  out  by  this  girl's  people, 
evilly  advised  as  he  believed,  envious  of  his  powers 
as  a  dancer.     He  had  saved  their  village  from  attack 


38  THE    FLIGHT 

and  they  knew  it.  His  heart  was  bitter  against  them 
and  he  desired  to  return  among  them  as  a  great  war- 
rior, greater  than  their  greatest,  and  so  compel  their 
admiration  and  triumph  over  them. 

Already  he  had  killed  an  enemy  in  a  fierce  hand  to 
hand  struggle  upon  the  butte.  The  scalp  of  a 
Pawnee  scout  hung  at  his  belt  and  the  lust  of  war, 
the  desire  for  a  name  among  men,  was  upon  him. 
Should  he  not  prove  himself  before  this  envious  peo- 
ple and  should  they  not  freely  give  him  the  maiden 
of  his  choice  ?  Thus  he  hesitated,  the  prey  of  hot 
and  contending  desires. 

Then  quite  suddenly,  in  the  heat  of  his  battle  with 
passion  and  pride,  the  maiden  stiffened  in  her  saddle, 
struck  her  horse  a  stinging  blow  with  the  quirt  and 
was  off  in  the  flight  of  a  night  bird. 

The  Buffalo  Woman  had  halted  and  was  calling 
lustily  when  Tokala,  coming  up,  answered  the  anx- 
ious mother  that  she  had  stopped  to  mend  a  saddle 
girth.  The  girl  was  glad  of  the  friendly  darkness 
which  sheltered  a  face  hot  with  shame  and  resent- 
ment. 


Ill 

THE   TEST 

DURING  seven  suns  the  Brule  rode  to  the 
northwest.  At  noon  of  the  eighth  he 
mounted  a  high  ridge  in  the  bad  lands  of 
Inyan  Wakan.  Upon  a  crowning  point  of  the  ridge 
stood  Inyan  Wakan  himself,  sacred  Mystery  Rock 
of  the  Oglalas.  This  was  the  Mecca  of  the  young 
warrior's  first  pilgrimage.  Hither  he  had  come  to 
make  gifts  to  Grandfather  Inyan,  to  fast  and  pray  and 
to  dream  and  see  visions,  portents  of  good  or  of  evil. 
He  had  made  this  journey  solely  on  report,  but  far 
away  he  had  seen  the  gray-white  rock,  clean  cut 
against  the  sky,  keeping  a  silent  and  mysterious 
guard  over  the  wastes  of  the  bad  lands.  There  could 
be  no  mistaking  the  identity  of  this  Rock  of  Mys- 
teries which  marked  the  limit  and  guarded  the  bounr 
daries  of  a  country  which  the  Dakotas  had  won  from 
the  Absaroke.  This  was  indeed  the  all  enduring  one, 
the  one  alone  able,  in  a  country  laid  waste  by  them, 
to  stand  against  the  spirits  of  thunder,  wind  and  fire. 
Here,  where  the  thunders  and  whirlwinds  battled  in 
the  moons  of  rain  and  where  the  ever  returning  ice- 
god  had  his  grip,  so  that  life  and  vegetation  were 

39 


40  THE    TEST 

destroyed,  Inyan  Wakan  had  withstood  their  attacks 
during  lives  beyond  the  mind  of  man  to  count. 

As  he  advanced  the  Brule  saw,  as  he  had  been 
told,  that  all  else  had  been  laid  low.  Beyond  Inyan 
Wakan  there  was  no  stone  nor  tree  to  mark  the 
desolate  waste  as  far  as  eye  could  reach.  The  spirits 
of  the  upper  world  had  indeed  made  a  lasting  peace 
with  Grandfather  Inyan  and  he  stood,  as  their  repre- 
sentative, to  be  propitiated.  Everywhere  the  land 
was  marked  as  the  abode  of  thunder  spirits  and  the 
birthplace  of  whirlwinds. 

These  had  laid  their  red  and  yellow  paints  upon 
all  the  hills.  The  lone  rider  saw  also  evidences  of  a 
great  battle  which  the  thunder  people  had,  a  long 
time  since,  fought  with  the  under-water  monsters. 
Huge  bones  of  these  creatures,  turned  to  stone,  were 
scattered  among  the  hills.  Upon  a  jutting  promon- 
tory he  stopped  to  view  with  breathless  wonder  the 
skeleton  remains  of  a  giant  of  the  under-world,  the 
back  bone,  as  it  appeared,  of  a  creature  which  had 
measured  half  a  stone's  throw  from  head  to  tail.  The 
immense  vertebrae,  broken  apart  at  regular  intervals, 
lay  in  a  curved  line  along  the  crest  of  a  spur  and, 
as  the  Brule  looked  down  upon  the  fragments,  his 
soul  was  filled  with  awe. 

"  Hun-hun-he  !  "  he  exclaimed,  "  here  was  one  to 
swallow  a  tribe  of  people  !     The  thunders  may  some- 


THE    TEST  41 

times  strike  a  Dakota  when  he  has  angered  them  but 
of  a  truth  they  have  done  our  people  a  great  service. 
But  for  these  folk  of  the  clouds  no  one  I  think  would 
now  be  living." 

At  last  he  drew  near  to  Inyan  Wakan  and,  at  a 
proper  distance,  dismounted  and  picketed  his  horse. 
He  laid  aside  his  shield  and  war  weapons  and  stripped 
to  the  loin  cloth.  Then  he  anointed  his  hair  and 
made  an  offering.  He  laid  a  bundle  of  sweet-grass 
on  the  ground  and  covered  the  heap  lightly  with 
small  stones.  Lighting  the  herbs  he  stood  over  the 
smoke  of  incense  and  made  a  prayer  to  the  Most 
Mysterious.  Having  done  this  he  painted  his  face 
in  green  and  ochre  and  his  body  with  yellow  earths. 
He  smoked  to  the  four  winds  and  chanted  a  sacred 
song  with  his  eyes  upon  the  zenith. 

After  a  reverential  period  he  approached  Grand- 
father Inyan  holding  his  pipe  and  medicine  bundle 
before  him.  As  he  drew  near  he  chanted  a  song 
sacred  to  the  Rock  of  Mysteries. 

"  O  Grandfather,  I  am  coming, 
O  Grandfather,  I  am  coming, 
My  father,  the  sun  is  looking, 
My  father,  the  sun  is  looking, 
Ate,  heya  lo,  Ate,  heya  lo." 

He  passed  around  the  rock  thus  singing,  his  eyes 


42  THE    TEST 

upon  its  gray  and  furrowed  surface,  until  he  paused 
before  a  sacred  niche  which  was  a  shrine  of  Oglala 
offerings.  Inside,  upon  the  bed  of  a  triangular  notch, 
he  saw  the  gifts  of  aspiring  hunters  and  warriors  who 
had  come  before  him — stained  feathers  of  the  eagle 
tied  to  pipes  of  red  stone,  medicine  rattles,  amulets, 
bags  of  paint  and  curious  images  of  wood  and  stone, 
gifts  of  highest  value  to  the  donours. 

The  Brule  untied  his  mystery  bundle,  a  bag  of 
parfleche  containing  his  wotawe,  or  sacred  charms. 
He  took  therefrom  a  beautiful  necklace  strung  of 
copper  beads  and  the  hollowed  bones  of  cranes'  wings 
polished  until  they  held  the  gleam  of  old  ivory.  This 
fine  ornament  he  laid  within  the  niche,  placing  it 
upon  his  red  pipe  which  had  its  bowl  carved  to  rep- 
resent the  head  of  sungmanitu  the  wolf. 

"  Grandfather,  I  give  you  these,"  he  said  bowing 
himself  upon  the  rock.  For  a  long  time  he  stood 
with  an  ear  against  the  hard  surface  and  with  closed 
eyes  that  he  might  the  better  catch  any  message  from 
the  spirits  of  mystery. 

Hearing  and  seeing  nothing  he  understood  that  his 
sacrifice  had  been  of  too  slight  a  nature,  that  he  must 
dance  and  fast  and  pray  until  such  time  as  the  mys- 
terious ones  should  choose  to  listen.  Therefore  he 
prepared  himself.  He  led  his  horse  to  a  brook  and 
picketed  the  animal  among  scant  tufts  of  herbage. 


THE    TEST  43 

An  ablution  in  the  stream  cleared  his  body  of  paints, 
and  when  this  was  done  he  built  a  fire  of  dry  sage 
bush,  heated  stones  and  sitting  over  these,  within  the 
covering  of  his  robe,  took  the  vapour  bath. 

Having  a  pure  body  and  with  his  mind  set  upon 
sacred  things  he  returned  to  Inyan  Wakan,  donned 
his  paints  and  danced  the  wakan  wacipi  or  sacred 
mystery  dance.  Dance  and  chant  he  continued  until 
his  voice  sank  to  a  whisper  and  his  legs  refused  their 
office.  He  lay  in  a  stupor  of  exhaustion  until  a  late 
rim  of  moon  rose  above  the  hills. 

Awakened  by  the  near  yapping  of  coyotes  he  sat 
in  the  pale  moonlight,  his  flesh  benumbed  and  his 
teeth  clacking  with  the  chill  of  a  light  frost.  He  had 
lain  all  night  upon  the  bare  earth  without  covering. 
This,  however,  was  included  in  his  discipline  and  he 
arose  and  resumed  dancing. 

During  two  suns  he  danced  and  slept.  He  took 
no  nourishment  but  water  and  performed  no  errand, 
save  to  repicket  his  horse  when  thirst  drove  him  to 
the  brook.  He  prayed  often  to  Inyan  Wakan  and 
the  thunder  spirits. 

On  the  third  night  as  he  was  dancing  wearily  he 
heard  a  voice  saying  plainly,  "  Lie  down,  lie  down 
and  keep  your  eyes  shut." 

He  did  as  the  spirit  bade  him  and  lo,  suddenly  all 
became  light  as  day.     He  had  returned  to  his  mother 


44  THE    TEST 

country  and  was  become  a  boy  again.  On  the  banv 
of  the  Turtle  Hill  River  he  sat,  dangling  his  feet  in 
water  and  wriggling  his  toes  that  he  might  attract 
small  fish  within  reach  of  his  reed  spear. 

While  idling  thus  he  was  aroused  by  the  near 
whoops  of  Pehan  the  sand-hill  crane.  Ho-ho !  it 
was  the  season  of  young  cranes  just  before  they  learn 
to  fly.  He  seized  his  bow  and  blunt-end  arrows  and 
hurried  through  the  tall  grass.  Near  a  hill  he  saw 
the  cranes.  Two  old  ones  were  fighting  with  a 
coyote  to  preserve  their  young.  Near  by  the  heads 
of  three  young  birds  were  seen  amid  the  wagging 
grass  which  tangled  their  legs  in  running.  Seeing 
his  opportunity  the  young  hunter  ran  in  pursuit  and 
captured  all  the  birds. 

When  he  had  killed  their  young  the  old  ones  flew 
away ;  but  the  coyote  approached  to  the  top  of  a  near 
mound  and  sat  upon  his  tail. 

"  Come  hither,  my  friend,  I  wish  to  speak  with 
you,"  the  coyote  called,  very  pleasantly. 

"  Oho,  Miyacca  !  "  cried  the  boy, "  I  know  you  very 
well.  You  think  you  are  very  smart  but  some  other 
folk  know  as  much  as  you  do.  You  cannot  steal 
from  me,  so  you  had  better  go  about  your  business." 

And  now  the  overwrought  brain  of  the  dreamer 
was  crowded  with  visions.  The  coyote  and  the  boy 
disappeared  and  out  of  the  shifting  panorama  of  wild 


THE    TEST  45 

life  and  out  of  its  curious  imaginings  and  from  no- 
where that  men  wot  of  pictures,  vividly  realized, 
succeeded  each  other  in  swiftly  moving  scenes. 

An  eagle  flew  low  down,  shrilly  screaming,  and  a 
thunder  bird,  darting  lightnings,  followed  in  pursuit. 
Stampeding  buffaloes  rained  out  of  the  sky  and  the 
dreamer  cowered  beneath  their  hoofs.  A  flight  of 
fiery  arrows — the  heyoka  man — a  yellow  bird  with  a 
blue  crest — a  thousand  small  dancing  devils  of  in- 
finite variety  in  shape — a  travois  running  away  with 
a  horse — a  spirit  woman  of  the  sky — ghosts  of  the 
under-world — a  red  whirlwind  spinning  tops  off  the 
hills — all  these  he  saw  and  other  flitting  scenes  with 
no  drop  of  curtain  between  the  acts, 

Suddenly  he  saw  his  heart's  desire  standing  at  a 
little  distance.  Upon  her  face  and  in  her  eyes  was  a 
provoking  smile  of  invitation.  Instantly  he  darted 
after  her  and  the  maiden  fled  looking  back  and 
mocked  him  with  shrill  laughter.  For  many  bow- 
shots he  followed  vainly  until,  at  last,  the  girl  van- 
ished, going  into  a  hole  in  the  earth.  Into  this  hole 
he  followed  her  and  found  himself  face  to  face  with 
Miyacca  and  his  family. 

"  So-ho  ! "  said  the  coyote,  "  thus  you  have  come 
to  me  in  the  end.  Very  well,  you  shall  have  my 
eldest  daughter  for  your  wife  and  you  shall  dwell 
with  us  where  you  will  have  plenty  to  eat." 


46  THE    TEST 

At  daybreak  the  Brule  came  out  of  his  trance  and 
pondered  these  things.  So  many  visions  were  con- 
fusing and  his  scattered  senses  wrought  vainly  with 
them  till  the  pangs  of  hunger  drove  him  to  seek  his 
store  of  meat. 


IV 
WHEN   GREEK   MEETS   GREEK 

DEEP  within  the  heart  of  a  mountain  chain, 
and  sunken  to  the  level  of  a  soil  rich  with 
vegetation,  lay  the  valley  of  a  stream  skirted 
by  the  lodges  of  the  Susuni. 

Following  far  the  trail  of  buffalo  hunters,  the 
Brule  had  come  upon  this  seat  of  his  ancient  enemies. 
On  a  certain  afternoon  in  the  moon  of  ripe  plums  he 
lay  in  hiding  on  a  mountainside  and  looked  down 
upon  the  scattered  village,  and  upon  its  pony  herds 
grazing  among  the  foot-hills.  The  teepees  were 
mere  gray  points  dotting  the  grasslands  ;  the  horses 
were  as  ground  squirrels  ;  and  men  moved  as  insects 
among  them. 

Here  verily  was  much  good  spoil  resting  in  the 
security  of  a  stronghold.  Long  and  eagerly  the 
Brule  gazed,  his  eye  taking  in  every  detail  in  the 
contour  of  the  valley,  conning  its  exits  and  entrances. 
All  his  judgment  and  his  cunning  were  summoned  in 
planning  a  coup  against  these  old  enemies  of  the 
Sioux,  and  he  saw  that  there  was  cover  in  infinite 
measure  for  the  climber  and  footman.  Bodies  of 
horsemen  would  have  found  it  impossible  to  attack 

47 


48    WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

this  Susuni  town  successfully.  £ven  a  single  horse- 
man could  not  have  approached  unobserved  and  the 
Sioux  had  turned  his  pony  loose  at  the  distance  of 
half-a-day's  march. 

The  Susuni  had  moved  into  this  valley  through  a 
single,  narrow  pass,  and  this  canon  trail  was  guarded 
day  and  night  by  their  lookouts.  Thus  much  the 
Brule  had  discovered  in  making  a  complete  circuit  of 
the  mountains  which  surrounded  their  big  straggling 
village.  And  he  had  now  obtained  the  best  possible 
point  of  vantage  from  which  to  overlook  the  whole 
ground  of  their  stronghold.  He  had  never  seen  a 
village  so  favourably  situated  to  furnish  spoil  for  the 
forays  of  a  single  crafty  foe. 

He  might  not  take  the  Susuni  horses,  but  he  saw 
with  certain  eye  his  opportunity  to  waylay  stragglers 
and  hunters  from  the  village,  to  attack  them  from 
cover,  making  good  his  retreat.  So  he  planned  after 
the  manner  of  his  kind.  He  would  be  patient,  un- 
observed, like  the  fish-hawk  not  stooping  to  strike 
until  sure  of  his  prey,  and  the  mountains  should 
furnish  him  safe  eyrie  of  retreat. 

As  he  lay  watching  the  movement  of  life  at  the 
village  all  the  war-blood  stirred  in  his  veins.  He 
lived  again  his  fight  with  and  victory  over  the 
Pawnee  scout.  Again  he  heard  the  stealthy  ap- 
proach, a  faint  stir  of  pine  needles  under  the  moc- 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK    49 

casined  feet,  the  feathered  rustle  of  small  bush  unseen 
and  so  touched  in  the  darkness,  sounds  the  white 
man's  ear  trumpet  would  scarce  have  gathered. 
These  tiny  rustlings  his  ear,  intent  upon  the  move- 
ments of  the  soldiers,  had  caught  and  he  crouched 
behind  a  rock  and  waited  like  the  long  yellow  cat  of 
the  mountains. 

Presently  he  saw  the  crested  head  of  the  scout  cau- 
tiously framed  amid  a  growth  of  pencil  cedar.  Ha  ! 
this  one  was  cunning  in  some  ways,  but  he  thought 
himself  spying  upon  a  woman  engaged  in  mourning 
for  her  dead  ! 

Again  the  hiding  one  lifted  his  voice  in  a  sexless 
wail  and  chanted  a  dirge  for  the  dead.  The  feathered 
scalp-lock  vanished  amid  the  cedar  bush  and  there 
was  a  period  of  thrilling  silence. 

Then,  gripping  his  knife,  the  Brule  once  more 
poured  out  his  soul  in  a  series  of  quavering  wails. 
His  eye  was  set  upon  the  top  of  the  boulder  behind 
which  he  stooped.  He  thought  not  to  be  taken  by 
surprise  but  the  Pawnee's  leap  was  the  quick  pounce 
of  a  coyote.  Koska  barely  caught  the  enemy's 
wrist  as  his  knife-arm  was  thrust  downward.  To- 
gether they  had  rolled  upon  the  ground,  where  they 
writhed  and  twisted  until  the  Brule  had  turned  his 
knife  upon  the  soft  parts  and  cut  the  Pawnee's  body 
half  in  two.     This  scout  had  foolishly  worn  his  broad 


50  WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

belt,  with  the  totem  of  the  Great  Father,  over  a 
shoulder  and  under  an  arm.  Huh  !  he  should  have 
known  better. 

For  the  hundredth  time  perhaps  the  Brule  unfas- 
tened the  scalp-lock  which  hung  at  this  same  belt. 
The  single  tuft  of  long  hair,  with  a  basis  of  scalp  of 
the  size  of  a  silver  half-dollar,  wanted  but  a  facing  of 
beaded  buckskin,  a  ribbon  and  a  stained  eagle's 
feather,  to  become  a  beautiful  ornament.  Several 
times  this  cherished  trophy,  catching  upon  bush  or 
briar,  had  nearly  been  wrenched  from  its  buckskin 
fastenings.  Yet,  though  no  one  but  Tokala  Noni 
had  seen  him  as  the  wearer,  the  Brule's  vanity  would 
not  permit  him  to  carry  it  within  the  safer  folds  of 
his  medicine  pouch. 

Dangling  at  his  soldier's  belt  it  gave  him  the  sense 
of  being  a  warrior,  ready  at  any  moment  to  strike  an 
enemy ;  and  that  enemy,  should  one  chance  to  spy 
upon  him,  would  be  the  less  bold  to  attack  because 
of  this  visible  token  of  his  prowess.  It  was  his  out- 
ward insignia  of  rank,  even  as  the  shoulder  piece  of 
a  Long- Knife  captain. 

A  long  time  the  Sioux  sat  gazing  upon  his  trophy, 
living  over  his  one  exploit  in  war.  Then  as  the 
shadows  gathered  he  crept  away  like  a  cougar  to  his 
lair  and  disposed  himself  for  the  night. 

For  two  suns  he  spied  upon  the  Susuni  camp, 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK     51 

eagerly  watching  to  note  the  going  out  of  hunters 
among  the  hills.  Evidently  there  was  much  meat  in 
their  teepees  ;  in  all  this  time  he  saw  only  stray 
parties  of  women  and  young  folk  picking  berries 
among  the  hill  coulees.  He  had  not  come  out  to 
make  war  upon  women  and  children  and  so  possessed 
his  soul  in  patience. 

On  the  evening  of  the  second  day,  however,  a  fog 
arose  in  the  mountain  valley.  A  silver  thread  of  the 
creek  was  first  obscured,  then  the  fringe  of  teepees, 
willow  thickets  and  trees  vanished  and  finally  the 
lower  hills  with  their  grazing  herds. 

The  Sioux  bestirred  himself.  He  descended 
through  a  thicket  of  quaking  asp  to  the  bed  of  a 
canon.  Along  this  he  followed,  stepping  from  stone 
to  stone,  or  picking  the  hard-baked  soil  to  walk  on. 
In  this  manner  he  approached  the  foot-hills  and  came 
within  the  cloak  of  their  fog. 

For  some  time  he  trod  cautiously  among  the  grazing 
ponies,  seeing  no  one.  He  had  wrapped  his  blanket 
about  his  head,  letting  its  folds  drop  to  the  knees,  and 
thus  prowled  among  the  herds  looking  at  and  admir- 
ing many  fine  ponies.  Suddenly,  when  such  appear- 
ance was  least  expected,  the  figure  of  a  man  took 
shape  in  the  mists — a  very  large  and  fleshy  man  with 
a  rawhide  rope  in  hand. 

This  man  was  looking  for  some  wary  horse  which 


52  WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

could  best  be  snared  in  the  fog.  He  held  his  lariat 
ready  to  throw  and  was  searching  diligently  among 
the  herds.  The  Brule  shuffled  on  with  assumed  in- 
difference and  the  man,  evidently  mistaking  the 
muffled  figure  for  a  stroller  from  the  village,  ap- 
proached and  began  to  speak  in  a  tone  of  friendly 
inquiry. 

Seeing  that  he  must  certainly  be  discovered  the 
Sioux  flung  aside  his  blanket  and  leaped  at  the  big 
Susuni,  swinging  his  hatchet  for  a  stroke.  If  he  had 
thought  to  find  a  sluggish  fighter,  in  so  big  and 
heavy  a  man,  Koska  was  instantly  undeceived.  With 
the  lithe  leap  of  a  fox  the  Susuni  bounded  aside  and 
his  ready  rawhide  slapped  the  Brule's  cheek  and 
closed  over  an  arm  and  shoulder.  Another  astound- 
ing leap  and  a  jerk  which  would  have  wrenched  a 
sapling  from  its  roots  and  the  Sioux  was  flung  head- 
long upon  a  hill-slope.  The  breath  was  knocked 
from  his  body  and  for  a  moment  he  lost  conscious- 
ness. 

He  came  to  his  senses  to  find  the  enemy  dragging 
him  ignominiously  down  a  hill  and  looking  back 
with  contemptuous  jollity.  A  wide  grin  of  triumph 
cleft  the  man's  fat  face.  So  !  this  fat  eater  of  snakes 
thought  no  more  of  snaring  a  Sioux  warrior  than  he 
would  of  taking  a  rabbit !  The  man  proposed  to  drag 
him,  Koska,  with  a  Pawnee  scalp  at  his  belt,  into  his 


WHEN  GEEEK  MEETS  GREEK    53 

village  to  be  spit  upon  by  women  and  children  !  The 
Brule's  tomahawk  was  gone ;  his  bow  he  had  flung 
aside  with  his  blanket ;  one  arm  was  pinned  to  his  side 
but  the  other  hand  was  free  and  his  knife  was  in  its 
sheath. 

Presently  the  Susuni  began  the  descent  of  a  steep, 
rocky  pitch.  He  chuckled  with  evil  glee  as  he  jerked 
his  captive  roughly  after  him  and  he  had  no  more 
fear  upon  his  grinning  face  than  if  he  had  been  haul- 
ing a  harmless  snake.  What  a  tale  for  the  Susuni 
village ! 

Seeing  an  opportunity  the  Sioux  suddenly  hunched 
his  shoulder  against  a  rock  and,  in  a  momentary 
check  of  progress,  whirled  his  feet  forward  and  thrust 
them  against  a  boulder.  The  big  man  laughed  yet 
more  heartily  and  gave  a  mighty  tug,  straining  for- 
ward and  sidewise.  In  the  wink  of  an  eyelid  the 
Sioux  whipped  his  knife  and  slashed  the  braided  raw- 
hide. The  careless  and  exultant  giant  tumbled  head- 
long, clutching  at  space,  and  in  two  leaps  the  Brule 
was  upon  him.  A  single  thrust  severed  the  bones 
of  the  Susuni's  neck  and  he  lay  as  harmless  and  as 
still  as  the  stones  he  had  fallen  across. 

The  young  Sioux's  wire-strung  muscles,  his  quick 
eye  and  his  perfect  training,  had  done  the  business. 
Standing  Elk,  his  mother's  brother,  had  taught  him 
the  leaping  stroke  and  many  old  parfleches  and  bags, 


54    WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

stuffed  with  dry  grass,  had  been  cut  to  pieces  in  those 
lessons. 

As  the  Brule  raised  himself  and  stood  above  the 
fallen  man  his  first  thought  was  of  his  uncle  and  this 
early  practice.  "  Hau  !  "  he  said.  "  My  uncle  taught 
me  well ;  see,  I  hit  the  neck  here  exactly  as  I  used  to 
hit  his  blue  marks  on  the  grass  bags.  Hau !  it  was 
well  done." 

He  did  not  exult  over  his  stricken  foe ;  instead  he 
greatly  admired  the  man's  proportions,  the  vast  mus- 
cles of  his  thigh,  breast  and  forearm.  And  this  big 
Susuni  had  been  a  brave  man,  swift  in  action  and  un- 
erring with  his  lariat.  The  young  brave's  heart 
swelled  with  pride  as  he  realized  in  the  man's  propor- 
tions, his  dress  and  qualities,  the  importance  of  his 
own  deed.  Not  only  was  the  Susuni  of  immense 
size,  but  his  highly  ornamented  breech-cloth  and 
moccasins,  his  fine  necklace  and  armlets,  proclaimed 
him  a  man  of  distinction  among  his  fellows.  That  he 
had  been  a  warrior,  absolutely  fearless,  had  been  suf- 
ficiently proven. 

With  great  care  the  Brule  unwound  the  man's  long 
braids  selected  and  secured  a  tuft  of  hair  which  was 
to  become  his  chief  adornment  and  mark  of  distinc- 
tion. A  necklace  strung  of  elk's  teeth  and  Navajo 
silver  beads — the  prize  of  a  life's  effort — he  untied 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK    55 

from  the  warrior's  breast.     "  Hoh  !  "  said  the  Brule. 
"  Hun-hun-he ! " 

When  he  had  admired  this  and  the  arm  bracelets 
and  bestowed  them  upon  his  person  he  returned  to 
the  hill,  secured  his  hatchet,  blanket  and  bow,  and 
again  courted  the  mists  and  mystery. 

It  was  a  good  time  for  the  man-hunt.  As  he 
stalked  with  head  enfolded  and  weapons  concealed  in 
his  blanket  he  heard  voices  calling  here  and  there 
upon  the  hills,  now  near,  now  far  away.  Men  were 
out  looking  for  their  ponies,  to  gather  them  in  lest 
they  be  spirited  away  in  the  clouds.  He  knew  the 
callers  were  men ;  for  boys  and  women  seldom  go 
among  the  hills  when  a  cloud  lies  on  the  earth.  Only 
men  who  have  powerful  wotawe  may  do  this. 

Hearing  voices  near  and  coming  toward  him  at 
last,  he  halted  and  listened  intently  until  he  made  out 
that  two  men  were  riding  together  and  going  to 
the  village.  He  shifted  his  position  a  little  and  then 
stood  solemnly  erect,  close  muffled  in  his  blanket. 

It  is  not  the  custom  to  speak  to  or  notice  those 
who  stand  thus  apart  and  when  two  men,  riding  a 
single  horse,  passed  within  a  few  paces  they  continued 
talking  together,  paying  no  heed  to  the  vigil  of  a 
solitary. 

As  they  rode  on  the  Brule  dropped  his  blanket  and 


56  WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

fell  in  behind.  He  walked  rapidly  and,  coming  very 
close,  drew  his  bow  and,  fetching  the  arrow's  notch 
to  his  ear,  transfixed  the  riders.  They  fell  to  the 
earth  and  died.  The  hunter  of  men  took  their  scalps 
and  thrust  at  their  bodies  contemptuously  with  his 
foot.     A  pair  of  fools  these  ! 

Darkness  was  now  falling  and,  hearing  no  more 
voices  nor  seeing  any  one,  the  Sioux  betook  himself 
to  the  mountains.  Once  out  of  the  region  of  the 
fog  he  again  became  a  wary  hider  of  his  trail.  He 
picked  his  way  to  the  far  heights  with  infinite  care 
and  patience,  keeping  his  body  always  covered  from 
the  view  below.  Within  the  shelter  of  timber  he 
jumped  from  stone  to  stone,  from  log  to  log,  zig- 
zagging like  a  hunted  fox. 

He  did  not  cease  these  tactics  until  far  into  the 
moonlit  night,  and  he  had  made  a  full  half  circuit  of 
the  Susuni  town.  Then  far  up  in  the  mountains, 
upon  the  crest  of  a  ridge  and  under  the  shadows  of  a 
great  pine,  he  made  his  night  bivouac.  At  this  fa- 
voured spot  his  eye  could  command  every  avenue  of 
approach. 

Up  to  this  moment  all  his  energies  had  been  taxed 
to  their  utmost  tension  in  making  a  blind  trail,  an  ab- 
solutely safe  and  mysterious  retreat.  Although  his 
ears  had  been  pricked  to  the  sounds,  he  had  heard  no 
shout  or  tumult  which  must  have  followed  the  dis- 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK  57 

covery  of  his  deeds.  On  this  height,  within  the 
tent-like  shelter  of  the  pine,  he  felt  safe  from  pur- 
suit at  last. 

Here  he  had  leisure  to  feel  the  thrill  of  triumph. 
And  he  had  done  quite  enough  to  make  his  renown 
as  a  warrior,  to  give  him  a  name  even  among  far 
tribes  of  men.  He  had  only  to  make  good  his  re- 
treat to  his  own  people  and  the  story  of  his  lone  ex- 
pedition, his  single  hand  stroke  at  the  Susuni,  would 
be  told  at  a  thousand  camp-fires  from  the  great  rivers 
to  the  mountains.  Like  a  current  of  rare  old  wine  in 
the  veins  his  elation  tingled  to  the  finger  tips. 

"lama  warrior,"  his  heart  sang,  "  I,  even  I,  am 
great  among  those  who  have  gone  against  the  enemy. 
Will  the  Oglalas  now  shun  me  ?  Will  they  not  speak 
of  Koska  in  the  teepees  ?  Shall  I  not  seek  my  own 
among  them?" 

Over  his  head  a  great  owl  alighted,  booming  its 
weird  night  cry  among  the  hills.  In  Hinhan's  whoop- 
ing notes  there  sounded  the  paeon  of  victory  to  which 
his  own  swelling  throat  dared  not  give  utterance. 
For  caution  yet  held  him  in  its  grip,  that  he  might 
live  to  tell  of  his  deeds  and  display  his  trophies. 
And  this,  even  though  his  lithe  body  writhed  upon  the 
ground  in  restraint  of  his  desire  to  shout  and  dance. 

Whoo-ahu-ahoo-ahu  !  hu  !  Surely  this  was  a  voice 
of  the  upper  world  chanting  the  deeds  of  a  warrior, 


58  WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

unmatched  for  cunning  and  prowess.  Almost,  while 
he  exulted,  he  feared  the  loud  whoopings  of  Hinhan 
might  be  heard  by  the  Susuni. 

Then  other  voices  and  sounds  of  the  night  filled 
his  ears — the  barking  of  a  fox — the  startled  whistle 
of  a  deer — the  heavy  scramble  of  some  animal  upon 
a  mountain  slope — the  shrill  trilling  of  pine  locusts — 
the  far-off  whinny  of  a  horse.  And  the  Brule  lay  like 
a  cougar,  crouchant,  taking  note  of  these  night  voices. 

In  the  end,  hearing  nothing  to  alarm,  there  came 
a  moment  when  he  could  no  longer  abate  his  de- 
sire for  action  and  he  arose  and  danced  under  a  pine 
tree.  He  offered  a  pipe  to  the  four  winds,  to  earth 
and  sky  and,  under  his  breath,  chanted  his  thanks  to 
Grandfather  Inyan  and  the  thunder  spirits.  For 
these,  beyond  question,  had  lent  to  his  eye  its  cer- 
tainty of  aim  and  to  his  arm  the  might  to  strike. 

He  danced  until  his  legs  were  weary ;  then  wrapped 
his  blanket  about  him,  trusted  himself  to  Mother 
Earth  and  to  his  sacred  charms,  and  slept. 

He  awoke  when  the  Great  Father  of  earth  had  be- 
gun to  put  red  paint  upon  her  mountain  tops.  He 
gazed  for  a  moment  in  wonder  at  pine-clad  peaks 
tipped  with  the  red  blush  of  dawn,  and  at  fire  clouds 
lowering  above  which  seemed  inverted  prairies  of 
flame.  Marvellous  and  mysterious  was  the  wonder- 
world  of  morning ! 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK    59 

But  hunger,  masterful  and  urgent,  claimed  his  at- 
tention. He  had  eaten  nothing  since  the  sun  had 
risen  yesterday.  He  arose  and,  with  bow  and  arrow 
fitted,  trod  softly  among  the  pines. 

His  hunt,  unsuccessful  at  first,  carried  him  many 
bow-shots  into  the  mountains ;  then  a  young  deer 
leaped  from  its  bed  in  his  front  and  stood  to  gaze  at 
the  intruder.  A  boy  could  have  aimed  the  shaft 
which  struck  it  down.  Another  favour  of  the  high 
powers.  Though  suffering  from  hunger  the  Sioux 
carried  his  game  further,  threading  an  intricate  maze 
of  canons  with  carefully  picked  footsteps. 

When  he  had  secured  a  covert  of  quaking  asp,  a 
mere  cluster  of  small  growth  under  a  ledge  from 
which  his  eye  could  scan  all  points  of  approach,  he 
halted  and  ventured  to  make  a  fire.  Dry  sticks  of 
quaking  asp  burn  with  a  clear  flame,  giving  off  neither 
smoke  nor  odour.  Over  this  smokeless  fire  the  Brule 
half-roasted  strips  of  deer's  meat  and  ate  until  his 
stomach  was  rounded. 

After  he  had  eaten  he  bent  small  saplings  of  aspen, 
tying  their  tops  together  to  form  curing  racks  and 
upon  the  bows  of  these  hung  his  venison,  cut  to  thin 
slices  that  it  might  dry  quickly  in  the  sun.  By  the 
morning  of  another  sun  he  would  be  able  to  tie  all 
this  meat  in  a  light  bundle. 

Having  done  this  he  placed  his  war  trophies  in 


60  WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

a  heap,  along  with  his  wotawe  or  sacred  charms, 
and  seated  himself  cross-legged  before  them.  He 
took  count  of  his  treasures,  four  scalps,  a  wonderful 
necklace  of  elk's  teeth,  the  mazaska  beads  of  the 
Navajo,  the  revolver,  belt  and  cartouche  case  of  the 
Pawnee,  an  earring  of  yellow  iron,  a  large  knife 
with  iron  guards  which  he  had  also  taken  from  the 
Pawnee.  With  this  strong,  keen-pointed  knife  he 
had  struck  the  big  Susuni.  These  and  other  trinkets 
of  less  account  filled  his  eyes  and  his  thoughts  for  a 
long  time. 

Often  he  gazed  upon  his  three  amulets,  a  black 
stone  turtle  of  diminutive  size  encased  in  beaded 
buckskin,  an  eagle's  claw  tied  with  red  ribbon,  and 
a  small  pipe  of  blue  stone  which  his  grandfather 
had  taken  from  a  slain  Arapaho.  Which  of  these 
had  been  most  powerful  in  aid  of  gaining  his 
war  treasures?  Until  the  sun  rode  high  his  rev- 
erent mind  was  occupied  with  repeating  prayers 
of  thanks  and  with  problems  of  occult  and  religious 
nature. 

His  reveries  were  broken  in  upon  by  the  explosive 
and  near-by  cawing  of  crows.  He  looked  up  in 
alarm  to  see  a  crowd  of  these  conspicuous  and  noisy 
birds  gathering  among  the  small  tree  tops,  where 
they  squalled  remonstrantly  and  hungrily  eyed  his 
strips  of  meat. 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK  61 

"  Hinnu  !  "  he  cried,  in  excess  of  disgust  and  alarm, 
"  I  am  but  a  young  warrior  yet !  "  and  his  spirit  was 
suddenly  depressed  at  this  evidence  of  his  singular 
lack  of  judgment.  The  infinite  pains  he  had  been  at 
to  conceal  his  trail  were  no  longer  of  avail.  By  this 
time  Susuni  scouts  were  posted  upon  the  mountain 
tops.  These  would  already  have  seen  the  flight  of 
crows  winging  straight  to  his  covert  and  would  have 
said,  "  Ho  !  the  enemy  has  killed  some  large  animal. 
After  all  the  man  is  but  a  fool  who  has  for  once 
been  fortunate." 

"  Hinnu  !  Hinnu  !  "  the  exclamations  were  deep, 
guttural  and  contemptuous  of  himself.  While  he 
muttered  his  disgust  he  worked  swiftly,  gathering 
and  adjusting  his  weapons  and  treasures.  He  took 
enough  meat  for  two  or  three  days'  rations  and 
kicked  the  rest  into  an  open  spot  where  the  birds 
could  quickly  consume  it ;  then  he  crawled  out  of 
the  copse  and  began  his  retreat,  crouching  beneath 
the  ledge.  Passing  around  the  rocks  to  an  opposite 
slope  he  went  down  the  mountain,  leaping  like  a  goat 
from  rock  to  rock. 

Fear  urged  his  flight — fear  lest  death  or  capture 
should  overtake  him  before  his  deeds  should  be  re- 
counted among  Dakotas.  Having  left  open  sign  of 
his  recent  whereabouts  he  continued  to  mutter  as  he 
sped  calling  himself  witkotko,  a  crazy  fool.     Deep 


62  WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

into  his  barbaric  consciousness  pricked  the  lesson  ot 
the  hour. 

Down,  down  the  mountain  he  fled.  Here  upon  a 
stony  slope  he  could  not  take  heed  to  hide  his  trail. 
Bushes  crackled,  stones  broke  loose  and  rattled  upon 
his  heels,  thumping  past  and  ricochetting  upon  the 
steeps  below.  A  deer,  startled  from  its  feeding, 
sailed  away  to  the  right  showing  its  black -tipped 
flag  in  wide  curves  above  the  bush  lands.  At  the 
head  of  a  gulch  a  gray  bear  and  her  cubs  disputed 
his  right  of  way  and  the  runner  avoided  them,  going 
by  at  a  pace  which  drew  a  glare  of  astonishment  from 
the  bristling  trio. 

His  feet  were  shod  with  hard  soles,  leather  of  the 
bull  elk's  skin,  and  as  leaper  and  runner  he  vied  with 
the  mountain  ram.  And  the  fear  which  lent  him 
such  perilous  speed  was  the  fear  of  pride ;  his  repu- 
tation with  himself  was  at  stake.  He  had  struck  in 
secret  and  left  a  mystery  behind.  Should  the  enemy 
discover  him,  half  the  joy  and  much  of  the  fame  of 
his  exploit  would  pass. 

For  hours  he  fled,  running  tirelessly  until  he  had 
put  behind  him  an  intricate  maze  of  trail,  sufficient  to 
employ  the  most  skillful  of  trackers  for  at  least  two 
suns. 

Then  he  slept  and  spent  the  following  day  in 
search  and  recovery  of  his  horse.     Mounted  he  set 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK  63 

his  face  toward  the  Missouri  River  and  his  own 
Brule  village. 

Though  he  sought  the  covered  ways,  thinking  to 
avoid  further  risks,  he  had  to  pass  through  the  coun- 
try of  the  Absaroke  and  one  day,  in  turning  the 
curve  of  a  narrow  valley,  he  came  suddenly  upon  a 
camp  of  hunters.  Three  men  were  cooking  meat 
upon  a  creek's  bank  and  five  ponies  were  picketed 
on  the  grass-lands  a  little  below. 

Discovery  was  mutual  and  instantaneous.  In  a 
breath  and  upon  a  sudden,  fierce  impulse  the  Brule 
jerked  his  revolver  from  its  holster  and  charged. 
The  hunters,  thinking  that  a  war  party  was  close 
upon  the  heels  of  this  attack,  ran  wildly  after  their 
horses.  In  a  trice  the  Sioux  was  up  with  the  hinder- 
most.  When  he  had  emptied  the  barrels  of  his  re- 
volver two  men  were  stretched  upon  the  ground. 
The  other  mounted  a  pony  and  fled  and  the  Brule, 
having  a  well  worn  animal,  did  not  attempt  pursuit. 

Having  counted  coup  upon  their  bodies,  he  stood 
over  the  fallen  in  the  stature  of  a  man  and  of  a  war- 
rior of  high  deeds.  "  Now  truly,"  he  said,  "  the 
Oglalas  shall  know  that  I  am  one  favoured  of  Wakan 
Tanka." 

He  scalped  the  Kangi,  took  their  weapons  and 
ponies  and  rode  homeward,  going  at  a  hard  pace  all 
night.     The  horses  he  had  taken  were  not  of  the 


64    WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK] 

best,  yet  he  pushed  them  on  with  littte  rest  for  two 
suns.  On  the  third  night,  believing  himself  well  be- 
yond the  reach  of  pursuit,  he  rested. 

He  lay  in  a  deep  sleep  until  after  sunrise  and  then 
awoke  to  find  himself  disarmed  and  in  the  hands  of 
the  Kangi.  The  Absaroke  had  been  swift  in  pur- 
suit and  their  village  not  far  from  the  hunters'  camp. 
The  Brule's  little  horse  herd  had  wandered  to  a  dis- 
tance and  so  had  given  no  alarm  of  the  approach. 

Seeing  that  he  was  hopelessly  trapped,  though  un- 
fettered as  yet,  the  Sioux  arose  calmly  and  folded  his 
arms.  He  was  a  warrior  and  ready  to  accept  war's 
fortunes.  A  half  score  of  mountain  Crows  stood 
about  him.  They  displayed  no  anger  but  rather 
looked  upon  the  young  man  and  his  array  of  scalps 
admiringly. 

"  Hau !  hau  ! "  they  exclaimed  to  one  another. 
They  talked  together  for  a  time  in  low  voices  and  in 
a  strange  tongue  and  presently  seated  themselves  in 
a  semicircle  about  their  captive. 

At  this  mark  of  respect  the  Sioux's  heart  beat 
quickly ;  a  sudden  dark  flush  suffused  his  face.  He 
was  not  astonished  when  one,  by  signs  and  in  that 
trade  language  known  of  all  the  plain's  tribes,  invited 
him  to  tell  the  story  of  his  recent  exploits.  These 
big  mountain  Kangi  were  known  of  all  men  as  a  pe- 
culiar people,  fierce  in  war,  but  often  showing  marked 


%HEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK     65 

consideration  and  generosity  in  their  treatment  of 
captured  enemies. 

The  honour  of  recounting  his  deeds  to  them  of- 
fered compensation  for  all  that  they  might  do  to  him 
thereafter.    Koska  made  the  most  of  his  opportunity. 

He  began  slowly  and  impassively  taking  the 
liberty  to  walk  back  and  forth  before  the  Kangi  after 
the  manner  of  recounting  deeds  at  the  war  dances. 
He  used  the  common  and  limited  vocabulary  but 
supplemented  this  with  vivid  mimicry  in  the  sign 
language. 

From  his  discovery  of  the  approach  of  the  white 
soldiers  he  recounted  in  minute  detail  how  he  had 
spied  upon  them,  how  he  had  climbed  stealthily  to 
the  top  of  a  butte  within  hearing  of  the  buffalo  vil- 
lage where  he  had  imitated,  in  a  mysterious  way,  the 
wailing  of  a  woman  and  thus  had  given  warning  to 
the  Sioux  pickets. 

Seeing  that  the  Kangi  were  very  much  impressed 
his  manner  warmed,  his  voice  took  on  the  chant  of 
oratory,  and  his  gestures  became  as  a  picture  chart  in 
telling  of  his  hand-to-hand  struggle  with  the  Pawnee. 

The  oration  was  several  times  interrupted  with  ex- 
pressions of  approval.  Koska  had  been  trained  from 
his  youth  in  the  folk-lore  of  the  Brule  and,  having 
gained  the  interest  of  an  audience,  knew  how  to 
hold  it  increasingly. 


66    WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK 

Time  was  of  no  moment.  He  had  all  there  was. 
Therefore  he  narrated  all  the  essential  details  of  his 
journey  to  the  country  of  the  Susuni,  cunningly 
framing  them  to  the  climax.  He  forgot  that  he  was 
talking  to  enemies.  When  he  told  of  his  descent 
into  the  fog  and  of  his  fight  with  the  big  Susuni, 
omitting  nothing  of  the  latter's  dexterity  and  momen- 
tary triumph  with  the  lariat,  and  of  his  ruse  in  out- 
witting and  killing  the  fool  pony  riders,  the  Kangi 
were  overcome  with  generous  appreciation. 

"  Hau — hau — hau  !  "  they  shouted,  clapping  their 
hands  in  acclaim.  The  Whites,  the  Pawnees  and  the 
Susuni  were  also  their  enemies  and  this  man's  series 
of  successes  put  him  at  the  pinnacle  of  a  warrior's 
fame.     And  who  could  better  tell  of  his  deeds  ? 

They  knew  he  did  not  lie  for  he  had  the  evidence 
of  his  prowess  in  hand  and  his  story  of  attack  upon 
their  own  hunters  was  but  a  repetition  of  what  they 
had  already  known. 

When  he  had  finished  the  Brule  stood  before  them 
proudly,  remembering  that  they  were  enemies.  For 
a  time  the  Kangi  conferred  together  earnestly  in 
their  own  tongue ;  then  one  spoke  in  the  language 
mutually  understood. 

"  We  have  seen,"  said  this  one,  "  that  your  tongue 
is  straight.  Hitherto  for  a  long  time  the  Absaroke 
and  the  Dakota  have  been  enemies,  which  is  a  pity, 


WHEN  GREEK  MEETS  GREEK    6? 

seeing  they  are  cousins  and  have  enough  of  enemies 
in  common.  Why  should  we  hack  and  cut  each 
other  in  pieces  ?  The  Blackfeet  and  Susuni  are  con- 
tinually harassing  us.  The  latter  are  crossing  the 
mountains  lately  to  drive  us  eastward.  Come  and 
help  us  to  drive  them  back.  You  shall  lead  a  party 
of  our  young  men  and  you  shall  take  horses  of  the 
Susuni  and  will  thus  be  able  to  make  presents  to 
those  whom  you  have  bereaved  among  us." 

As  the  Sioux  listened  to  this  general  proposal  his 
heart  leaped  against  his  ribs.  Suddenly  the  visions 
he  had  seen  at  Inyan  Wakan  were  thrust  into  his 
mind  and  he  understood  the  import  of  his  dreams. 
All  their  mystery  had  vanished  and  he  stood,  indeed, 
in  the  coyote's  den. 

"  Good,"  he  said.  "  I  will  lead  your  young  men 
against  the  Susuni." 


THE  GATHERING  OF  THE  CLANS 

IN  the  valley  of  the  Arkansas  and  within  sight  of 
the  mountains  the  people  were  camped.  The 
lodges  of  the  Kiowas  and  Comanches  were 
pitched  somewhat  above  and  opposite  the  villages  of 
Red  Cloud  and  Yellow-Iron.  The  teepees  of  these 
last  were  scattered  along  either  bank  of  a  small 
stream,  fringed  by  willows  and  skirted  by  cotton- 
woods,  and  with  hills  in  the  near  distance. 

Into  this  country  the  southern  herds,  migrating  by 
instinct  to  the  region  of  the  season's  best  grasses, 
had  come  to  winter.  And  here,  remote  from  any 
post  or  settlement  of  the  invaders,  and  secure  by 
force  of  numbers  against  attack  from  Ute  or  Navajo, 
the  newly  allied  tribes  had  indeed  a  happy  hunting 
ground.  The  Most  Mysterious  had  poured  his 
riches  upon  this  country. 

It  was  at  the  beginning  of  the  moon  of  ripe  plums 

that  the  people  had  camped  here  and  there  followed 

a  long  period  of  perfect  autumn  days.     The  interest 

and  excitement  of  this  inter-tribal  life  were  unending. 

Feasts,  dances,  varied  amusements  were  continuous. 

Deerskin  drum,  flute,  Spanish  tambourine,  bull's-hide 

68 


THE  GATHERING  OF  THE  CLANS      69 

rattle  and  clattering  gourd  furnished  the  musical  ac- 
companiments, and  Kiowa,  Sioux  and  Comanche 
vied  with  each  other  in  splendour  of  dress,  in  grace 
of  carriage  and  movement,  and  in  marvels  of  physical 
prowess  and  endurance.  Tales  of  the  chase  and  of 
war  and  the  mysteries  of  the  wonder  workers  catered 
to  the  intellectual  and  aesthetic  needs.  'Twas  at  its 
climax,  the  glorious  life  of  the  wilderness. 

Nor  were  love  and  courtship  lacking.  Where  an 
eye  for  an  eye  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth  is  a  necessary 
code  a  woman's  honour  is  safe.  By  her  own  acts 
alone  can  it  be  tarnished.  So  it  was  that  the  maidens 
of  these  villages  came  and  went  and  mingled  together 
freely  during  the  open  day.  Each  one's  shield  of 
protection  was  her  own  reserve  and  her  own  head 
covering  and  this  was  as  safe  as  the  walls  of  a  con- 
vent. Did  she  choose  to  listen  to  the  voice  of  love 
she  did  so  demurely,  standing  in  the  seclusion  of 
some  by-path,  while  her  suitor,  in  equal  seclusion, 
attuned  his  flute  and  chanted  his  love  story.  Not 
infrequently  the  seductive  minstrelsy  was  pitched  in 
foreign  key  and  unknown  tongue ;  yet  love  pre- 
vailed, marriage  followed,  and  man  or  maiden  was 
expatriated. 

The  daughter  of  the  Dakota  chief  Yellow-Iron, 
because  of  her  fresh  youth  and  beauty,  her  grace  of 
bearing  and  her  taste  in  dress,  was  often  the  target  of 


70      THE  GATHERING  OF  THE  CLANS 

admiring  glances.  In  a  less  democratic  community 
she  might,  had  she  chosen,  have  claimed  preeminence 
among  maidens,  of  whom  enough  were  fine  and 
comely. 

Tokala's  family  clan  was,  perhaps,  the  most 
numerous  and  powerful  band  of  relatives  among  the 
many  gathered  at  this  encampment.  Yellow-Iron 
was  quite  the  equal  of  Red  Cloud  as  a  leader  and,  in 
most  affairs,  was  considered  the  safer  counsellor.  He 
had  risen  to  prominence  solely  on  the  merits  of  his 
deeds  and  his  character  ;  for  he  was  the  youngest  of 
a  numerous  family  of  brothers  and  sisters  of  whom 
eight,  heads  of  families,  were  still  living.  These 
were  High  Hawk,  sub-chief  and  the  eldest,  the  par- 
tisan Pawnee  Man,  Whirlwind  Soldier,  the  mystery 
priest  Young  Wolf,  and  three  women  known  as 
Cloud  Bird,  Three  Owls  and  Falling  Leaf.  All  these 
had  been  the  offspring  of  Running  Wolf  and  three 
sisters  whom  he  had  taken  successively  to  wife  and 
who  were  long  since  dead. 

These  brothers  and  sisters  of  forty  to  seventy 
winters,  together  with  their  descendants  and  near 
connections,  formed  a  powerful  and  closely  knit 
band.  It  was  a  wealthy  clan,  one  which  fought  for 
and  protected  its  own.  Feared,  respected  and  ad- 
mired, this  alliance  of  long  standing  had  bred  men 
and  women   of  strength  of  purpose  and   force   of 


THE  GATHERING  OF  THE  CLANS     71 

character.  The  spirit  of  family  pride  and  devotion 
had  been  fostered  by  two  or  three  master  minds 
among  the  children  of  Running  Wolf  and  the  fruit  of 
this  fostering  was  a  rare  attachment  of  each  to  each 
throughout  the  clan.  This  is  not  to  say  that  strifes 
and  animosities  were  never  engendered  among  them 
— individual  quarrels  arose  as  among  other  allied 
families;  but  the  wiser  heads  of  the  households, 
working  in  unison,  had  usually  succeeded  rarely  well 
in  bringing  the  offenders  together  in  amity. 

Such  was  the  powerful  clan  of  some  two  hundred 
members  wherein  the  family  of  Yellow-Iron  stood 
first  in  prestige  and  of  which  Tokala  Noni  was  the 
very  democratic  princess. 

Nevertheless  the  young  maid  at  this  gathering  of 
the  tribes  was  unapproachable  to  any  gallant  of  them 
all.  She  came  and  went  among  the  teepees  oblivious 
of  admiring  glances.  If  her  heart  were  sore  in  dis- 
appointment it  did  not  appear  ;  for  she  joined  in  the 
amusements  of  her  fellows  joyously,  as  became  a 
modest  girl  of  sixteen  winters. 

Her  only  male  comrade  and  intimate  was 
Keyahanhi,  the  lame  son  of  High  Hawk,  who,  by 
the  Indian  law,  was  accounted  as  her  blood  brother. 
This  youth  had  been  born  with  a  crooked  spine  and 
his  weak  back  prevented  him  taking  part  in  the 
hunting  or  in  any  of  the  active  sports. 


72      THE  GATHERING  OF  THE  CLANS 

His  was  the  defect  of  mystery  and  he  was  regarded 
in  some  respects  as  a  sacred  person.  He  did  not  lack 
in  useful  accomplishments.  He  was  a  draughtsman 
and  teepee  decorator  of  the  highest  art  of  Indian  at- 
tainment and  was  also  keeper  of  the  tribal  records 
and  a  repository  of  its  folk-lore.  Also  he  was  expert 
with  bow  and  arrow  and  no  one  excelled  him  in 
throwing  the  knife.  Keyahanhi  had  invented  many 
original  pictographs,  which  conveyed  to  the  Dakota 
mind  vivid  impressions  of  things  and  forces  in  action. 
Thus  the  warriors  and  hunters  of  his  clan  were  able 
to  get  their  robes  and  teepees  decorated  in  figures 
which  represented  their  deeds  and  which  delighted 
the  barbaric  taste.  Keyahanhi  was  never  so  happy 
as  when  thus  employed  and  he  asked  for  nothing  but 
the  pleasure  of  the  doing. 

He  was  also  a  genial  humourist  and  story  teller, 
able  to  entertain  old  or  young.  In  tribal  folk-lore  he 
had  been  patiently  schooled  by  the  men  of  mysteries  ; 
and  as  a  joker  he  was  original,  having  no  equal 
among  the  Oglalas. 

This  lame  youth  stood  high  in  the  esteem  of  his 
clan  and  there  were  few  who  would  not  have  done 
for  him  anything  that  he  might  have  asked.  On  the 
long  marches  he  rode  upon  a  travois  and  often  one 
or  more  of  the  trailers  would  ride  alongside  to  ex- 
change   badinage    or   cheery   words.     The   women 


THE  GATHERING  OF  THE  CLANS     73 

would  toss  into  his  vehicle  ripe  fruits  or  nuts  which 
they  had  gathered,  or  the  hunters  would  fetch  him 
presents  of  grouse  and  rabbits. 

Keyahanhi  repaid  their  gifts,  according  to  the  na- 
ture or  mood  of  the  giver,  with  jokes  and  laughter, 
with  complimentary  remarks  to  the  aged,  with  in- 
quiries about  personal  welfare  and  recent  doings. 
Now  and  then  he  furnished  the  cavalcade  with  mat- 
ter for  general  chaffing  and  laughter,  wherein  figured 
the  victim  of  a  practical  joke.  On  one  occasion  his 
uncle,  Yellow  Smoke,  fat  and  jolly  and  something  of 
a  wag,  rode  by  and  dropped  a  bag  containing  a  young 
fox  into  his  travois. 

"  I  know  you  are  fond  of  ornaments,  nephew," 
said  old  Yellow-Smoke.  "  You  are  very  welcome  to 
the  tail  of  that  fox."     And  he  passed  on. 

Keyahanhi  cried  :  "  Thanks,  uncle !  "  but,  on  un- 
covering the  fox,  discovered  that  his  waggish  relative 
had  already  appropriated  its  brush,  leaving  to  him 
only  the  stripped  vertebrae.  As  quick  as  thought  the 
boy  produced  the  tail  of  a  grown  fox,  which  had  been 
given  him  the  day  before,  and  slipped  it  over  the 
skinned  member. 

"  Hee,  uncle !  Heee  !  Come  back,  come  back  !  " 
he  shouted. 

Yellow  Smoke  pretended  not  to  hear  at  first  but 
finally  wheeled  and  returned,  his  fat  sides  shaking 


74     THE  GATHERING  OF  THE  CLANS 

with  laughter.  As  he  came  up  Keyahanhi  held  out 
the  fox  with  a  beautiful  brush  pendant. 

"  See,  uncle,"  he  said  very  earnestly, "  you  thought 
to  fool  me  with  your  joking  but  I  had  no  sooner 
touched  this  fox  than  this  fine,  large  tail  grew  upon 
it.  Great  are  my  mysterious  powers  !  Now,  uncle, 
you  are  a  warrior  and  a  man  of  deeds  and  this  large, 
red  tail  will  make  a  fitting  ornament  to  your  war-bon- 
net. Come  then,  let  us  exchange.  The  small  one 
is  indeed  quite  fine  enough  for  me.  Do  take  this 
big  one,  uncle,  and  give  me  yours." 

Quite  taken  back  at  this  return  for  his  joke,  and  yet 
supposing  the  lad  had  another  fox  under  his  robe, 
Yellow  Smoke  hesitated.  Then,  seeing  an  apparent 
eagerness  for  the  exchange,  he  assented. 

"  How,  how,"  he  said,  drawing  a  fox's  brush  from 
the  folds  of  his  shirt. 

The  exchange  was  made,  whole  fox  for  fox's  tail, 
but  Keyahanhi's  withdrawing  fingers  closed  deftly 
upon  the  newly  attached  brush,  and  the  coveted  or- 
naments were  both  left  in  his  hands. 

Numbers  of  persons,  attracted  by  the  lad's  shouts, 
had  gathered  about  the  two  and  the  prairie  now  re- 
sounded with  their  yells  of  hilarity.  Soon  the  tale 
of  this  trick  spread  the  length  of  the  caravan  and 
Yellow  Smoke  became  the  butt  of  endless  chaffing, 
which  he  bore  with  great  good  nature  because  he  had 
been  the  victim  of  Keyahanhi. 


VI 
HOME  LIFE 

THE  day  was  warm.  A  haze  lay  upon  the 
valley  and  obscured  the  mountains.  Small 
creatures  of  the  grass  and  trees  shrilled  in- 
sistently and  the  high-keyed  volume  of  their  music 
sounded  above  a  murmur  of  lazy  life  in  the  encamp- 
ment. Now  and  then  noisy  crows  flapped  above  the 
teepee  poles  or  the  war-cry  of  an  eagle  dropped  out 
of  the  sky.  Old  men  and  dogs  slept.  Around  the 
lodges  sand  lizards  flitted,  playing  at  hide  and  seek. 
The  hunters  had  gone  to  the  chase  and  children  were 
gathered  among  the  shallows  of  the  sand-bars,  be- 
tween the  villages,  where  their  dripping  brown  skins 
glinted  in  the  yellow  sunlight.  Knots  of  ponies, 
gathered  under  the  trees,  crowded  together.  Busy 
with  tail  and  hoof  they  offered  as  little  as  possible  of 
unexposed  skins  to  the  deer-flies. 

At  most  of  the  lodges  the  folds  of  the  teepees  were 
tied  back  and  the  bottom  skins  rolled  up  so  that 
women  sat  under  them,  gossiping  or  doing  light 
housework,  as  under  huge  umbrellas. 

Within  such  a  bower  of  shade  Keyahanhi  and  his 

75 


76  HOME  LIFE 

mother  sat  alone.  The  Sky,  who  was  an  Omaha 
woman  almost  as  youthful  in  appearance  as  her  son, 
was  busy  with  readjusting  and  adding  to  the  orna- 
ments upon  her  husband's  war-bonnet.  To-morrow 
there  would  be  a  council  of  the  tribal  leaders  and  the 
state  dress  of  the  old  chief  needed  repairs. 

Keyahanhi  also  was  occupied.  Upon  a  new  and 
beautifully  tanned  robe  he  was  re-writing,  in  his  own 
pictographs,  the  tribal  records  of  his  grandfather. 
By  common  consent  of  the  family  clan  there  had 
fallen  to  his  keeping  and  interpretation  Talking  Bear's 
book  of  the  Oglalas.  Men  of  great  age  and  authority 
admitted  that  Keyahanhi's  rendering  of  these  totemic 
writings  accorded  perfectly  with  the  intent  of  the  his- 
torian. However,  some  of  these  old  ones  disagreed 
as  to  the  relative  importance  of  certain  events  as 
compared  with  others  which  should  have  marked  the 
years. 

Yet  the  robe  of  Talking  Bear  was  old  and  worn  ; 
many  of  its  pictures  were  faded  and  blurred ;  and 
Keyahanhi  had  long  been  ambitious  to  reproduce  the 
record  after  his  own  manner.  Until  of  late  there  had 
been  a  dearth  of  proper  skins  ;  but  now  The  Sky 
had  tanned  for  him  just  the  firm,  short-haired  bull's- 
hide  that  he  needed.  It  had  the  smooth  consistency 
necessary  for  his  sort  of  dry  tattooing.  Upon  the 
smoke-white  surface  of  this  robe  he  had  drawn  spiral 


HOME  LIFE  77 

chalk  lines,  carefully  measured,  and  between  these 
lines  figures  of  the  new  count  were  growing. 

As  he  pricked  in  his  stains  and  paints  he  wore  an 
air  of  subdued  excitement.  His  drawings  were  dif- 
ferent from  those  of  Talking  Bear.  He  worked  them 
out  slowly  and  with  painstaking  care,  often  hesi- 
tating, often  doubting,  and  in  the  end  each  one 
seemed  to  him  to  have  become  a  living  thing.  The 
pictures  of  Talking  Bear  were  made  after  the  con- 
ventional pattern  of  the  Dakota  and  were  easily  un- 
derstood of  all  persons.  Keyahanhi  was  in  much 
doubt  as  to  whether  his  woyakapi  would  be  accepted 
in  lieu  of  the  original.  This  doubt  became  akin  to 
exquisite  agony  when  he  had  finished  some  particu- 
larly striking  figure  which  departed  from  the  canons 
of  taste. 

There  was,  in  fact,  no  man  of  all  his  tribe  so  eager 
to  gain  distinction  as  this  lad  of  the  crooked  back. 
The  people  marvelled  at  his  labours  !  He  had  seen 
but  seventeen  winters  ;  he  was  scarce  able  to  walk 
without  the  aid  of  a  stick ;  yet  no  one  among  the 
Oglalas  could  do  so  many  things  so  well. 

And  he  was  the  pride  and  glory  of  the  fond 
mother  who  sat  upon  a  mat  opposite.  He  had  been 
her  only  child,  born  to  her  when  she  had  seen  but 
fifteen  snows.  Notwithstanding  the  general  belief 
that  his  crooked  spine  was  the  work  of  some  mys- 


78  HOME  LIFE 

terious  and  evil  spirit,  the  Omaha  mother  was  certain 
that  a  fall  she  had  had  upon  the  ice  had  caused  it. 
True  the  evil  ones  might  have  set  snares  for  her  feet 
but  she  had  been  racing  with  a  young  friend  and  this 
she  should  not  have  done  in  her  condition. 

As  often  as  she  could  spare  them  from  her  work, 
in  these  days  of  his  great  labour,  her  eyes  rested 
lovingly  upon  her  son.  She  shared  in  none  of  the 
doubt  which  crept  into  his  moods.  Had  he  ex- 
pressed his  fears  to  her  she  would  have  been  very 
certain  that  in  the  end  all  must  see  that  Keyahanhi's 
woyakapi  was  superior  to  that  old,  worn  one  of  his 
grandfather.  Neither  of  them  had  known  this  grand- 
father, who  had  been  an  uncle  of  High  Hawk  and 
of  Yellow-Iron. 

The  Sky  was  always  pleased  when  her  son  sat  in 
the  teepee  thus  intently  engaged.  She  shared  in  his 
moods  often  and  the  soft  light  in  her  eyes,  the  glow 
as  of  twilight  in  her  cheeks,  reflected  them.  That 
he  owed  any  inspiration  to  this  deep  quiet  of  sym- 
pathy Keyahanhi  was  wholly  unaware.  Yet  he  was 
never  unaware  of  the  presence  of  his  mother.  She 
could  slip  through  the  tiyopa  never  so  softly  that  her 
going  went  unnoted  and,  quite  unconsciously  too, 
there  followed  an  abatement  of  the  intense  interest 
which  had  pinned  him  to  his  work.  He  seldom 
talked  with  his  mother.     Whole  days  passed  in  the 


HOME  LIFE  79 

teepee  with  no  word  between  them  save  an  occasional 

monosyllable. 

****** 

The  boy  had  grown  weary  at  length.  He  inclined 
his  aching  back  against  a  bale  of  robes  and  turned 
his  gaze  outward.  The  haze  had  lifted  in  a  breeze 
and  shadows  lay  across  the  valley.  Life  was  begin- 
ning to  stir  in  the  village.  Women  were  returning 
from  the  coulees  with  bundles  of  fagots  for  the  night 
festivities.  The  children  had  come  out  of  the  river 
and,  with  fresh  zest  for  their  land  games,  were  romp- 
ing among  the  teepees.  A  cross  dog  pelted  by 
blunt-ended  arrows  ran  howling  away  to  the  bushes. 

Keyahanhi  laughed.  This  dog  had  more  than 
once  snapped  at  his  own  heels.  He  would  have  shot 
the  creature  long  since  had  it  not  belonged  to  the 
medicine-god-woman.  He  heard  this  old  woman 
shrieking  maledictions  after  the  daring  boys  who 
were  scuttling  away  to  the  river's  bank.  He  laughed 
again  and  yet  again  presently  when  a  bunch  of 
ponies,  set  agoing  by  those  same  boys  who  were 
after  them  with  grass  ropes,  stampeded  through  the 
village. 

Old  men  yelled  and  women  screamed  and  flour- 
ished their  arms ;  but  the  horses,  with  heads  lifted 
and  fore-hoofs  slapping,  to  clear  the  way  of  dogs, 
hurtled  on  amid  curing  racks,  kettles  and  camp  ef- 


80  HOME   LIFE 

fects.  A  vicious  pinto,  tangled  in  a  top-guy  rope, 
wrecked  a  teepee  pulling  it  down  over  a  woman's 
head. 

Keyahanhi  forgot  his  weariness  in  merriment.  He 
had  no  sympathy  for  the  woman  of  the  fallen  teepee. 
People  who  were  fearful  enough  to  top-guy  their 
lodges  against  the  winds  were  always  getting  into 
difficulties. 

When  the  dust  of  the  scurry  had  settled  Keya- 
hanhi's  eyes  sought  the  western  sky-lines.  A  num- 
ber of  long  feather-clouds  lay  high  athwart  the  blue. 
The  lad  counted  seven  of  these  white  plumes  stretch- 
ing parallel  to  each  other — war-bonnets  of  the  cloud 
people  !  He  had  never  seen  any  so  large.  What 
kind  of  folk  indeed  were  those  invisible  ones  who 
could  wear  feathers  which  spanned  the  mountains  ! 
Truly  they  were  very  great  and  mysterious. 

The  mountains  also  with  peaks  bonneted  in  snows 
and  touching  the  clouds  formed  a  world  of  mysteries. 
Keyahanhi  had  lived  always  on  the  plains ;  there 
were  no  such  immense  hills  in  his  country.  These 
fired  his  imagination,  preparing  him  for  marvels  of 
belief.  The  eastern  slopes  of  a  great  range  now  lay 
in  shadow.  But  the  atmosphere  had  clarified  until 
timbered  scarps,  gaping  canons,  tilted  table-lands  and 
promontories  were  outlined  as  in  a  mirror  of  the 
sky. 


HOME  LIFE  81 

The  lame  youth  saw  not  these  things  as  physical 
features.  To  him  the  snow-capped  peaks  and  bon- 
neted crowns  were  the  lodges  of  the  Most  Mysterious, 
their  cavernous  shadows  and  skyland  woods  the 
abode  of  unknown  creatures  of  fateful  augury  in  the 
affairs  of  men.  As  he  continued  to  gaze  his  face  be- 
came that  of  a  dreamer.  The  ant-like  business,  the 
rustle  and  hum  of  village  life,  sank  from  sight  and 
hearing.  He  was  looking  at  the  abode  of  thunder 
spirits  and  whirlwind  people,  the  makers  of  clouds 
and  forgers  of  the  zigzag  arrows  of  the  sky,  and  of 
those  who  drive  the  winds  forth  to  battle  and  hurl 
their  stone  missiles  at  the  earth. 

From  this  spell  of  the  mountains  and  their  mys- 
teries he  was  presently  awakened  by  the  subtle 
essence  of  a  human  presence — a  sympathetic  pres- 
ence. He  turned  his  eyes  to  the  tiyopa  knowing, 
without  having  seen  her,  that  Tokala  stood  in  the 
doorway. 

The  girl  had  dressed  for  a  maiden's  feast  and  wore 
smoke-tanned  fawn  skins  richly  braided  and  em- 
broidered with  stained  porcupine  quills.  Her  hair 
was  freshly  oiled  and  fell,  in  two  braids,  across  the 
shield  and  below  the  belt  of  her  dress.  Her  eyes 
were  shining  and  her  face  was  aglow ;  for  she  had 
come  bringing  a  gift. 

In  one  hand  she  carried  a  turtle-shell  bowl  heaped 


82  HOME  LIFE 

with  yellow  plums.  "  How,  how,  sister,"  greeted 
Keyahanhi,  recalled  from  the  skylands  by  her  wel- 
come coming.  "  I  had  thought  that  kanta  did  not 
grow  in  this  country,"  he  said,  as  she  set  the  bowl 
between  himself  and  his  mother. 

"  So  we  were  told,"  said  Tokala,  "  nevertheless  Ina 
and  I  found  these  after  going  far  up  a  small  creek." 
She  took  seat  upon  a  bearskin  and  The  Sky  arose 
and  let  down  the  outer  folds  of  the  teepee.  Keyahanhi 
helped  himself  to  the  plums.  "  Han  han  !  "  he  said, 
"  these  are  quite  the  finest  kanta  I  have  ever  eaten. 
Do  tell  us  about  getting  them,  sister.  Did  you  meet 
with  any  of  the  mysterious  ones  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed,"  said  Tokala,  "  we  met  some  mag- 
pies who  talked  very  mysteriously.  We  could  make 
out  nothing  of  what  they  meant." 

"  What  were  you  doing,  sister  ? "  the  lad  asked 
eagerly. 

"  Why,  we  were  just  going  among  some  bushes 
above  where  we  had  tied  our  ponies  when  these  mag- 
pies came,  one  on  either  hand  and  one  in  front  of  us. 
Then  two  others  appeared.     We  were  surrounded  ! " 

"  And  did  they  talk  ?  " 

"  Every  one.  They  seemed  to  be  scolding  us  and, 
fearing  a  mischief,  Ina  counselled  a  retreat.  So  we 
started  back  to  our  ponies." 

"  Ho,  I  do  not  know  what  to  think  of  those  mag- 


HOME   LIFE  83 

pies ; "  said  Keyahanhi,  "  it  appears  that  they  were 
really  angry." 

"  But,  brother,  perhaps  they  had  seen  Sinte-hda  and 
thus  wished  to  give  us  warning  ;  for  we  had  gone  but 
a  little  way  down  the  hill  when  we  heard  Rattle-tail 
making  his  whizzing  sound." 

"  How,  how,"  cried  Keyahanhi,  "  those  birds  were 
telling  you  of  Sinte-hda.  You  did  well  to  retreat 
for,  though  you  encountered  but  one,  doubtless  there 
were  a  great  number  of  these  snakes  near  by.  Did 
you  kill  Rattle-tail,  sister ;  did  you  drop  a  stone  on 
his  head  and  jump  on  it  ?  " 

"  We  were  afraid  and  ran  off  to  our  ponies,"  re- 
plied Tokala. 

"  I  also  am  frightened  when  Rattle-tail  makes  a 
whizzing  noise,"  said  The  Sky.  "  Yet  Sinte-hda  is 
somehow  a  foolish  fellow.  He  makes  such  a  great 
fuss  beforehand  that  he  seldom  can  strike  his 
enemies.  But  where,  my  daughter,  did  you  find 
these  sweet  plums  ?  " 

"  Oh,  Ina,"  cried  the  girl,  "  that  is  the  wonderful 
part  of  my  story.  You  know  the  people  have  said 
plums  do  not  grow  so  near  the  mountains.  Well, 
we  were  hunting  for  nuts  and  acorns  and  rose-berries 
when  we  found  a  very  wet  place  where  the  trees  and 
bushes  were  so  thickly  interwoven  that  we  had  to 
step   upon   sinking   bogs.     These  makacoco  would 


84  HOME  LIFE 

hardly  bear  our  weight.  Then  while  we  were  care- 
fully  picking  our  way,  wetting  the  moccasins  and 
leggings,  the  rain  came.  Who  would  have  believed 
it  ?  Just  a  little  cloud  no  bigger  than  a  teepee  cov- 
ering !  P'hip-p'hip-p'hip-t'pi-pti-p't-p'tit,  like  that  it 
rained  ;  very  softly  the  rain  dropped.  We  stopped 
under  some  willow  fringes  and  while  we  were  hiding 
from  the  rain-drops  some  ducks  fell  out  of  the  sky  ! 
Yes,  truly,  I  think  they  came  down  with  the  rain  ; 
they  tumbled  into  the  water  with  such  a  splashing. 
We  thought  they  must  be  cloud  ducks  because  our 
hunters  do  not  kill  any  like  them.  Well,  these  birds 
discovered  us  and  away  they  went,  making  a  great 
noise." 

"  Did  they  go  back  into  the  sky  ?  "  asked  Keya- 
hanhi,  "  if  they  did  they  belong  to  the  thunder 
people." 

«  But  we  did  not  hear  the  thunder  at  all,"  objected 
Tokala. 

"  What  colour  were  these  ducks  ?  " 

"  Dear,  dear,  I  did  not  notice." 

"  You  are  a  girl,"  said  Keyahanhi  resignedly. 

"  But  the  plums,  my  daughter  ? "  inquired  The 
Sky. 

"  Oh,  yes,  the  plums,  Ina,  we  found  them  at  the  end 
of  the  bogland  after  we  had  pushed  through  a  fringe 
of  willows.     There  was  just  a  close  little  thicket  of 


HOME  LIFE  85 

thorn  trees  with  nothing  but  plums  on  the  ground. 
We  were  astonished.  Some  of  the  fruit  was  spoiled, 
but  we  gathered  enough  to  fill  one  bag.  We  could 
not  find  any  more." 

While  she  was  talking  Keyahanhi  spread  his 
painted  robe  before  her.  "  See,  sister,"  he  said,  "  I 
have  to-day  drawn  '  Red  Hawk  Calls  the  Buffaloes  in 
War-Dress.'  That  is  the  name  of  a  winter  which 
passed  before  my  grandfather  was  born." 

The  figure  to  which  he  called  attention  was  that 
of  a  chief  in  full  dress,  standing  upon  a  curved  line 
which  represented  a  hill.  One  arm  and  hand  were 
extended  upon  a  level  with  the  painted  chin.  The 
attitude  was  suggestive  of  beckoning  and  the  mouth 
was  open.  At  the  feet  was  a  smudge  which  the  eye 
recognized  as  of  sweet  grass,  and  spiral  lines,  indica- 
tive of  smoke  and  mystery,  were  drawn  toward  the 
sky. 

Tokala  bent  above  the  robe  and  studied  the  picture 
admiringly. 

"  I  think  it  is  very  perfect,"  she  said.  "  Was  it  not 
strange  that  one  should  call  the  buffaloes  wearing  his 
bonnet  and  war-dress  ?  Would  they  not  be  afraid  to 
come  near  ?  " 

"  They  were  not  afraid,  it  appears,"  said  Keya- 
hanhi. "  See,  here  is  my  grandfather's  picture.  The 
many  tracks  show  that  a  large  number  of  buffaloes 


86  HOME  LIFE 

came.  Red  Hawk  must  have  had  a  powerful  medi- 
cine.    People  cannot  so  call  them  any  more." 

"  They  do  not  need  to  call  them  here.  I  think 
that  we  should  continue  to  live  in  this  country," 
Tokala  said  with  conviction. 

The  Sky  looked  at  her  soberly.  "  Do  you  not 
then,"  she  asked,  "  wish  to  return  to  the  Smoky 
River?" 

Tokala  turned  her  eyes  to  the  open  tiyopa  and 
considered  the  matter  gravely.  "  No,"  she  replied 
finally,  "  I  do  not." 


VII 
AN   INDIAN  WOOING 

THE  moon  of  goose-flight  had  arrived  and 
long  lines  of  teepees,  smoky  and  weather- 
beaten,  yet  stood  upon  the  banks  of  the 
Yellow  River.  The  buffaloes  were  gone  but  the 
lodges  were  stored  with  dried  and  pounded  meats 
and  now  the  hunters  took  toll  of  the  runs  of  fish  and 
flights  of  geese  and  ducks. 

There  had  passed  seven  moons  of  peace  and  plenty 
and  of  deaths  and  accidents  there  had  been  so  few 
that  it  was  known  the  Wakan  Tanka  had  especially 
favoured  the  allies.     The  death  of  High  Hawk,  killed 
at  a  buffalo  surround  in  the  moon  of  first  snows,  had 
been  the  chief  casualty  among  the  Oglalas.     His  rel- 
atives had  sincerely  mourned  the  old  chief's  loss  for  a 
time.     With  the  passing  of  the  snows  talk  and  tales 
of  him  were  numbered  among  the  things  of  tradition. 
The  Buffalo  Woman  and  Tokala  were  often  vis- 
itors at  the  lodge  of  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi.     And 
to  these  relatives  the  Omaha  mother  had  confided  a 
secret  plan  of  herself  and  her  son,  which  had  to  do 
with  a  certain  doctor  and  man  of  mystery  at  the 

87 


88  AN   INDIAN  WOOING 

Comanche  village.  They  had  reason  to  hope  that 
this  wonder-worker,  who  had  added  to  a  knowledge 
of  the  medicines  and  mysteries  of  his  own  people 
those  also  of  the  Spanish-Mexican,  would  be  able  to 
make  Keyahanhi  whole  and  strong. 

Never  had  The  Sky  and  her  son  so  much  desired 
this  consummation.  They  had  as  yet  provision  and 
property  for  their  needs ;  but  they  knew  that  the  time 
must  soon  come  when  they  would  be  dependent,  for 
many  necessaries,  upon  the  gifts  of  their  friends. 
Yet  the  employment  of  a  foreign  doctor  was  a  matter 
requiring  discretion.  There  were  jealous  mystery 
workers  among  the  Oglalas  whose  enmity  they 
wished  to  avoid.  So  only  the  wife  of  Yellow-Iron 
and  her  daughter  were  taken  into  their  confidence, 
and  Keyahanhi's  visits  to  the  Comanche  were  of  ap- 
parently no  purpose  save  for  amusement. 

One  afternoon  the  Buffalo  Woman,  returning  to  her 
teepee  after  a  long  talk  with  The  Sky  about  this  mat- 
ter, found  her  husband  alone  and  dressed  for  some 
important  occasion.  She  looked  at  him  with  furtive 
admiration ;  for  he  was  a  handsome  man  when  be- 
comingly arrayed.  He  had  a  high  look  upon  his 
face,  though  he  seemed  to  be  intent  upon  clearing 
his  pipe,  at  the  bowl  of  which  he  was  scraping  with  a 
small  bone  instrument. 

Supposing  that  there  was  to  be  a  council  of  their 


AN  INDIAN  WOOING  89 

head  men  at  the  Soldiers'  Tepee  the  wife  held  her 
peace  and  resumed  her  household  duties.  She  was 
soon  engaged  in  pounding  dried  roots  but  turned  her 
eyes  now  and  then  to  glance  at  her  chief  with  ap- 
proval. He  was  indeed  resplendent  in  paints,  newly 
beaded  buckskins  and  training  head-dress.  The  pipe- 
bone  breastplate  which  covered  his  broad  chest  had 
been  cleaned  and  polished.  His  hair,  freshly  oiled 
and  braided,  was  strung  with  beautiful  ornaments  and 
his  war-bonnet,  of  her  own  and  Tokala's  fashioning, 
that  was  indeed  something  to  be  proud  of  !  Visor 
and  trail  piece  were  trimmed  in  porcupine  quills  in 
green,  red  and  yellow;  the  hangings  were  of  ermine 
skins  and  traders'  ribbons ;  and  crown  and  trail  piece 
carried  one  hundred  plumes  of  the  white,  tail  feathers 
of  the  bald  eagle,  tipped  in  black  and  tasselled  in 
scarlet  down.  This  bonnet  was  quite  the  finest  head- 
dress to  be  found  among  the  Oglalas.  It  had  been 
remodeled  since  the  chief  had  worn  it.  His  buck- 
skins also  were  new.  The  wife  herself  had  tanned 
the  skins  and  all  throughout  the  late  season  of 
snows  Tokala  had  laboured  putting  on  the  rich 
beadwork.  The  wife  could  ill  conceal  her  pride  and 
satisfaction. 

Presently  the  chief  seated  himself  opposite  her, 
filled  his  pipe  and  smoked  for  a  time.  He  had  said 
nothing  and  now,  of  a  sudden  as  he  looked  at  her, 


90  AN   INDIAN  WOOING 

the  wife  became  aware  that  his  silence  was  weighted 
with  matter  of  import  and  that  he  wished  to  speak 
with  her.     This  he  did  in  due  season. 

"  Mitawin,"  he  said,  "  my  brother's  family  are 
bereft  now  these  many  moons.  Lo,  there  is  no  one 
to  furnish  meat  for  the  teepee.  I  hear  that  my  sis- 
ter-in-law and  her  son  must  soon  subsist  upon 
charity." 

During  the  slow  delivery  of  these  sentences  the 
Buffalo  Woman's  face  had  taken  on  an  imperturbable 
mask.  She  maintained  a  discreet  silence  and  contin- 
ued with  her  work. 

Seeing  at  length  that  she  seemed  not  to  have 
listened  the  chief  repeated  his  words.  A  man  does 
not  often  seek  thus  to  impress  his  wife. 

After  some  deliberation  the  Buffalo  Woman  made 
reply,  still  keeping  at  her  work.  With  phrases 
wrought,  as  it  were,  into  the  twist  of  her  stone 
pestle,  she  said,  "  Keyahanhi  is  gone  secretly  to  the 
village  of  the  Comanches  where  there  is  a  wakan 
man  who  knows  all  mysteries.  It  is  said  that  this 
man  can  make  my  nephew  strong  and  able  to  hunt 
for  the  teepee.     My  sister-in-law  believes  it." 

"  I  have  heard  of  this,"  said  Yellow-Iron  at  length. 
"  Women  do  not  well  to  attempt  to  keep  these  mat- 
ters secret.  It  seems  that  the  Most  Mysterious 
made  my  brother's  son  as  he  is.     He  was  born  thus. 


AN   INDIAN   WOOING  91 

Are  we  like  to  see  a  man  able  to  undo  the  work  of 
Wakan  Tanka  ?     It  is  foolishness." 

Of  a  large  build,  and  phlegmatic,  wholly  unlike  her 
magnetic  and  active  husband,  the  Buffalo  Woman 
yet  understood  his  moods  and  often  read  his  thoughts 
ahead  of  specific  utterance.  Perhaps  this  was  be- 
cause she  was  some  years  older  than  he  and  had  been 
a  wife  before  she  married  him.  She  now  gazed  at 
Yellow-Iron  with  the  steady  eye  of  benevolence  and 
for  the  first  time  in  their  married  years  he  sat  before 
her  somewhat  abashed.  He  did  not  lift  his  eyes 
from  the  bowl  of  his  pipe.  After  a  proper  time  the 
wife  spoke  soberly. 

"  Is  it  not  quite  to  be  expected,"  she  asked,  "  that 
my  sister-in-law  will  wish  to  return  to  her  own  peo- 
ple ?  She  is  yet  a  young  woman  and  may  marry 
among  the  Omahas  where  she  has  many  kinfolk. 
She  had  thirteen  winters  when  she  was  taken  and 
women  do  not  easily  forget  their  kinsmen." 

The  chief  continued  to  study  the  bowl  of  his  pipe, 
but  he  spoke  again  presently. 

"  My  sister-in-law  is  a  Dakota,"  he  said.  "  She 
has  lived  too  long  among  us  to  wish  for  change. 
Her  son  is  a  Dakota." 

The  Buffalo  Woman's  face  took  on  a  serious  cast 
of  reflection.  Her  brows  were  knitted  by  thoughts. 
"  Perhaps,"  she  ventured  at   length,  "  perhaps,  it  is 


92  AN   INDIAN  WOOING 

possible,  my  sister-in-law  would  wish  to  live  with  us. 
Lo,  my  husband  is  a  great  hunter  and,  when  there  is 
meat  to  be  had,  our  teepee  is  well  provided." 

"  How,  how  !  "  Yellow-Iron  lifted  his  eyes  to  his 
wife's  face,  looking  at  her  with  approval.  u  My  arm 
is  strong,"  he  said,  u  and  we  have  more  than  enough. 
Shall  we  speak  to  your  sister-in-law  about  this  ?  " 

The  Buffalo  Woman  sat  in  quiet  for  a  time.  She 
was  thinking  deeply  about  this  matter.  When  a 
Dakota  takes  a  second  wife  it  is  usually  the  sister  or 
niece  of  his  first  and  being  of  close  kin  the  new  re- 
lation is  often  a  welcome  one.  The  Sky  was  an 
Omaha,  but  she  had  always  been  the  favourite  sister- 
in-law,  and  the  Buffalo  Woman  had  no  marriageable 
sister  of  the  blood  kin.  Yellow-Iron  was  younger 
than  herself  by  several  winters  and  she  reflected 
that,  in  course  of  time  being  a  man  of  property,  he 
would  naturally  wish  to  take  a  younger  wife.  He 
was  of  a  just  nature  and  would  provide  equally  for  all 
the  members  of  his  household.  She  would  choose 
then,  she  considered  finally,  that  he  should  take  this 
good  and  amiable  Omaha  woman. 

She  arose  and  put  a  gray  blanket  about  her  head 
and  shoulders.  "  Come,"  she  said,  "  let  us  talk  with 
The  Sky,  before  Keyahanhi  returns." 

*f*  *i*  *1*  *^h  *l*  "^ 

The  Sky  sat  alone  in  her  teepee.     She  was  very 


AN   INDIAN   WOOING  93 

busy.  From  her  store  of  dried  berries  and  roots  and 
from  the  small  stock  of  dried  beef  at  hand  she  was 
making  wakapanpi,  or  pemmican.  This  was  most 
nourishing  food  and  was  made  in  the  interest  of 
economy.  The  long  march  to  the  north  would  be- 
gin in  the  moon  of  good  grass  and  all  her  hoard  of 
provision  would  be  needed.  She  had  laid  aside 
mourning  for  her  husband  and  was  taking  thought 
for  the  future. 

While  she  worked  hope  was  busy  with  this  future. 
Coyotero,  chief  medicine  man  of  the  Comanches, 
had  declared  to  Keyahanhi  that  he  could  make  him 
whole  and  strong  as  other  men.  This  powerful 
wakan  man  had  promised  to  conjure  the  evil  spirit 
which  had  its  grip  upon  the  spine  of  her  son.  Two 
ponies  had  been  agreed  upon  as  the  price  of  a  cure , 
but  these  were  not  to  be  delivered  to  the  wakan  man 
until  he  had  truly  worked  this  wonder.  Thus,  as  The 
Sky  worked,  she  was  thinking  of  her  dear  boy  and 
offering  prayers  to  the  Most  Mysterious  that  he 
might  be  made  strong  and  able  as  other  men. 

Suddenly  the  folds  of  her  tiyopa  were  parted  and 
the  Buffalo  Woman  came  in.  She  was  followed  by 
Yellow-Iron,  who  stooped  low  to  make  room  for  his 
high  plumes.  The  two  said,  "  How,  how,"  taking 
seats,  as  was  the  custom,  without  ceremony. 

The  Sky  returned  their  greeting  and  put  aside  her 


94  AN   INDIAN   WOOING 

work.  She  was  not  a  little  surprised  that  the  chief 
should  call  upon  her  in  such  distinguished  dress. 
Instantly  she  was  troubled,  for  she  thought,  "  Now 
truly  my  brother-in-law  is  angry  because  of  my  son 
going  to  the  Comanche  doctor.  He  has  come  to  re- 
prove me." 

So  certain  was  she  of  this  that  her  face  flushed 
with  emotion  and  the  wells  of  her  eyes  filled.  Hop- 
ing to  appease  her  grave  relative  she  placed  bits  of 
her  choice  wakapanpi  before  him  begging  him  to 
taste  of  her  meat.  "  I  am  glad,  brother-in-law,"  she 
said,  u  that  you  and  your  wife  have  come,  for  I  was 
feeling  lonely  without  my  son."  Thus  the  way  was 
at  once  made  plain  for  his  speaking  and  her  thoughts 
were  busy  with  what  she  should  say  in  defense. 

The  visitors  helped  themselves  to  her  meat  and 
pronounced  it  wasteste — very  good — and  Yellow- 
Iron  spoke  so  cordially  that  her  heart  leaped  joyfully. 
Surely  he  had  not  come  to  speak  harsh  words. 
When  he  had  finished  eating  the  chief  arose  gravely 
and  took  his  seat  upon  a  mat  which  had  once  been 
reserved  for  the  master  of  the  lodge. 

Something  in  his  manner  filled  The  Sky  with  a 
new  emotion.  Her  eyes  were  drawn  to  the  Buffalo 
Woman's  face,  and  what  she  saw  there  dyed  her 
cheeks  in  deep,  dark  reds.  Within  the  sister-in-law's 
slow    moving    nature   there   lurked   upon   occasion 


AN   INDIAN   WOOING  95 

something  of  mischievous  good  humour.  Although 
her  countenance  at  this  time  showed  grave  enough, 
mischief  was  gathering  in  the  corners  of  her  eyes  and 
The  Sky's  head  drooped  to  conceal  her  confusion. 

Her  intuition  had  grasped  the  meaning  of  this 
visit.  Yellow-Iron  in  splendid  array  had  come  as  a 
wooer.  The  Sky's  hands  nervously  sought  some 
work  from  the  parfleche  bag  at  her  side  ;  but,  when 
she  tried  to  thread  some  beads,  her  fingers  refused 
the  office. 

The  woman  had  much  reason  for  embarrassment ; 
for  what  was  apparently  about  to  happen  would  have 
been  welcome  enough  years  ago.  As  a  captive  she 
had  been  the  prize  of  High  Hawk  and,  being  but  a 
young  girl,  had  been  adopted  by  his  sister.  And 
when  she  had  become  reconciled  in  a  measure  to  the 
new  life  the  young  man,  Yellow-Iron,  had  begun  to 
look  upon  her  with  favour,  and  secretly  she  had  felt 
drawn  toward  the  handsome  warrior.  Then  High 
Hawk's  wife  had  been  drowned  and  she  had  been 
speedily  installed  in  his  lodge  with  none  to  gainsay 
his  powerful  wish.  She  had  been  a  faithful  wife  and 
mother ;  but  her  young  romance,  though  clipped  in 
the  budding,  had  not  been  forgotten. 

Her  visitors  did  not  long  keep  her  in  suspense. 
Presently  the  Buffalo  Woman  spoke  and  kindly. 

"  Sister-in-law,"  she  said,  "  you  have  said  that  you 


96  AN   INDIAN   WOOING 

are  lonesome  and  our  hearts  have  pitied  you.  We 
wish  now  that  you  should  dwell  with  us.  Lo,  my 
husband  is  greatest  among  Oglala  hunters  and  who 
is  so  able  as  he  to  protect  his  family,  who  so  swift  and 
cunning  to  take  horses  of  the  enemy  ?  He  wishes  to 
make  you  his  wife." 

"  Wan,"  said  Yellow-Iron,  "  what  she  has  said  is 
true.  My  heart  is  soft  toward  the  flower  of  the 
Omahas." 

At  these  words  The  Sky's  face  became  composed, 
the  colours  faded  from  her  cheeks  and  she  gathered 
her  pride  in  hand. 

"  I  do  not  wish  to  dwell  in  another's  teepee  but 
always  in  my  own,"  she  said,  speaking  softly  that 
she  might  not  give  offense. 

The  pair  saw  how  it  was  with  her.  "  Han,  Han," 
said  Yellow-Iron,  "  am  I  not  able  to  support  two 
lodges  ?     It  is  well." 

But  The  Sky  was  not  ready  to  yield  yet.  "  My 
friends  have  forgotten,"  she  answered,  "  that  it  is  not 
the  custom  among  my  people  for  the  bereft  to  marry 
soon.  After  five  more  moons  there  will  be  time 
enough  to  talk  about  this." 

"  How,  how,"  said  Yellow-Iron,  "  in  five  moons  we 
shall  speak  further  of  the  matter,"  and  he  arose  and 
went  out. 


VIII 
HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

THE  Comanches  had  gone  to  their  own 
Staked  Plains,  the  Kiowas  had  gathered 
their  horse  herds  for  a  move  and,  at  the 
Sioux  village,  the  travoix  were  packing.  It  was  early- 
morning  and  in  the  west  black  clouds  were  gathered, 
capping  the  mountain  tops.  The  wings  of  thunder 
birds  were  heard  afar  beating  the  air  with  strokes 
which  shook  the  earth  under  the  feet.  Far  out  upon 
the  plain  red  arrows  of  the  angry  ones  were  zigzag- 
ging spitefully. 

People  huddled  into  the  teepees,  here  and  there 
standing,  that  all  might  have  shelter  from  the  coming 
storm.  While  they  were  thus  waiting,  the  timid  ones 
muttering  prayers  for  safety,  a  hue  and  cry  arose 
upon  the  outposts.  Riders  came  clattering  in  with 
the  warning  shouts : 

"  The  enemy,  the  enemy  !  "  "  Fly — fly  for  your 
lives  !  "     "A  great  army  of  the  Long  Knives  ! " 

Tokala  and  her  mother  were  alone  when  these 
words  were  caught  out  of  the  clamour.  They  ran 
out  of  their  half-stripped  lodge  to  find  people  rushing 

97 


98         HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

for  their  ponies — warriors  springing  to  arms — con- 
fusion reigning  as  in  a  whirlwind.  High  above  the 
uproar  they  heard  the  voices  of  the  chiefs,  Red  Cloud 
and  Yellow-Iron,  "  Flee,  ye  women  !  To  the  moun- 
tains— to  the  mountains  ! "  And  to  their  warriors, 
"  Be  strong — be  strong,  ye  men,  to  go  against  the 
enemy  !  "  So  these  war-chiefs  raged  and  each  woman 
and  child  knew  that  safety  was  of  individual  seeking. 
Save  himself  who  can !  For  men  must  fight  and 
women  fly. 

Tokala  and  the  Buffalo  Woman  sped  for  their 
ponies  which  were  picketed  a  little  way  up  the  creek. 
In  every  direction  save  to  the  east  people  were  run- 
ning. In  flurries  of  desperation  they  were  leaping 
upon  ponies  or  hitching  travoix.  Women  with  babes 
in  arms,  boys  and  girls  of  tender  age,  dragged  at 
travois  poles  and  packs.  The  aged  and  helpless 
tossed  their  arms  and  shrieked. 

Tokala,  as  she  ran,  saw  the  same  wild  scene  enacted 
at  the  Kiowa  village,  the  scurry  of  the  frightened, 
where  a  kind  of  order  reigned  amid  chaos.  Teepees 
vanished,  knocked  together  in  a  bundle,  lines  and 
squads  of  armed  horsemen  formed  as  by  magic.  So 
there  would  be  time  to  flee  with  the  lodge  skins  and 
packs.  The  girl  and  her  mother  became  swiftly, 
furiously  methodic.  With  quick  knife  strokes  they 
cut  the  picket  ropes  of  their  ponies,  leaped  upon  the 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE         99 

backs  of  two,  and  lashed  the  little  herd  toward  their 
lodge. 

A  scout  went  by  them  riding  as  the  antelope  runs. 
»  Fly — fly — fly  \  "  he  shouted.  They  swept  the  east- 
ern hills  with  scared  glances  but  saw  no  enemies, 
only  their  own  warriors  scurrying  together  on  the 
flats.  At  their  lodge  they  hurled  themselves  to  the 
ground.  There  was  no  time  to  tie  horses ;  these 
were  gathered,  heads  together,  and  left  to  stand  with 
hanging  ropes.  Then  the  two  fell  upon  their  teepee 
and  in  a  twinkling  the  lodge  was  struck,  the  skins 
rolled  and  tied.  They  were  loading  a  travois  when 
their  ears  were  stunned  by  a  near  explosion,  and  a 
cloud  of  dirt  and  dust  was  thrown  over  and  upon 
them.  When  they  had  recovered  from  the  shock 
and  saw  clear  again  their  horses  were  stampeded  and 
the  rattle  of  firearms  was  heard  on  every  hand.  A 
great  gun  boomed  again  and  its  missile  shrieked 
above  their  heads  and  burst  upon  the  water. 

They  were  stricken  helpless  and  saw  other  women 
in  like  case  running  for  the  willow  thickets.  The 
enemy  had  charged  out  from  all  the  coulees  and 
ravines  to  east  and  north.  Persons  who  had  been 
fortunate  enough  to  gain  a  mount  were  flying  up 
river  or  jumping  their  horses  over  its  bank. 

"  Fall  down — fall  down  !  "  shouted  the  Buffalo 
Woman  to  her  daughter,   "  pretend  to  be   dead ! " 


100       HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

Tokala  was  standing,  still  dazed  from  the  effect  of  the 
bursting  shell,  when  these  words  were  screamed  into 
her  ear  and  accompanied  by  a  push  which  flung  her 
upon  her  face. 

The  rattle  of  guns,  the  clatter  of  hoofs  and  shouts 
of  war,  continued  and  came  roaring  in  upon  them 
until  they  were  enveloped  in  a  melee  of  fighting  men. 
It  was  impossible  to  lie  under  the  trampling  hoofs  of 
horses,  looming  as  large  as  buffaloes. 

Both  women  sprang  to  their  feet  and  ran,  the 
mother  foremost  and  neither  recking  whither. 

A  man  charged  toward  them,  a  man  upon  a  white 
horse,  swinging  a  long  knife.  Seeing  escape  impossi- 
ble, the  Buffalo  Woman  halted  and  tore  open  her  dress 
at  the  bosom  to  show  that  she  was  a  woman.  Tokala 
saw  the  soldier  plunge  his  long  blade  into  her  mother's 
breast  and  then  the  girl  fell  upon  the  earth  and  buried 
her  face  in  the  dust. 

Expecting  the  death  stroke,  she  cried  to  the  Most 
Mysterious,  "  Have  pity — have  pity — make  me 
strong — make  me  strong  !  " 

The  thunder  of  hoofs  and  rattle  of  shots  went  by 
as  a  rush  of  the  wind  and  the  girl,  astonished,  found 
herself  lying  alone  and  unharmed.  For  a  time  she 
lay,  scarcely  breathing,  while  the  tumult  of  fighting 
sounded  farther  and  farther  away.  Her  people  were 
retreating  across  and  up  the  river.     Then  quite  sud- 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       101 

denly  the  firing  ceased  and  she  lifted  her  head 
cautiously  to  peer  in  the  direction  they  had  gone. 

At  first  her  blurred  vision  could  take  in  nothing 
but  the  havoc  and  destruction  which  had  been 
wrought.  She  saw  only  the  bodies  of  the  dead,  the 
struggling,  wounded  horses,  the  burning  teepees  and 
scattered  packs.  The  impulse  to  go  to  her  dead 
mother  and  fall  upon  the  body  with  wailing  would 
have  quickly  roused  her  but  suddenly  men,  Indians 
of  a  strange  tribe,  appeared  at  the  river's  bank.  They 
had  come  to  plunder  and  scalp  the  dead.  She  knew 
by  their  appearance,  the  shining  brass  of  the  belts 
they  wore,  that  they  were  scouts  of  the  white 
soldiers. 

The  instinct  of  self-preservation  survived.  Lying 
flat,  with  face  to  the  earth  and  taking  advantage  of  a 
bit  of  uneven  surface,  the  girl  crawled  forward,  mov- 
ing as  the  snail  moves,  until  a  thicket  of  willow 
fringe  offered  shelter.  Within  the  copse  she  rose 
carefully  to  her  feet  and,  stepping  upon  sticks  and 
stones,  made  her  way  softly  to  the  water's  edge. 

The  small  creek  which  ran  through  the  Sioux  vil- 
lage had  a  shallow,  rippling  current.  Into  this  she 
stepped  and  waded  up  stream  with  as  much  haste  as 
was  prudent  until  there  were  no  longer  willows  to 
offer  shelter.  Again  she  took  refuge  in  a  copse. 
She  had  small  hope  of  escape,  yet  she  could  not  en- 


102       HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

dure  to  hide  without  watching  the  enemy.  She 
stole  forward,  parting  the  willow  twigs  with  infinite 
caution,  until  from  the  cover  of  a  cluster  of  small 
bush  she  could  look  out  upon  the  battle-field. 

A  half-dozen  strange  riders  were  going  slowly  over 
the  ground.  They  appeared  to  be  searching  for 
some  one  or  something  among  the  wrecked  teepees. 
Presently  one  halted  where  the  teepee  poles  of  Yel- 
low-Iron's lodge  were  still  standing.  This  one  leaped 
from  his  horse  and  examined  the  ground,  apparently 
looking  for  tracks.  He  seemed  to  follow  these  to- 
ward the  creek  and  stood  looking  down  upon  a 
body,  which  Tokala  was  certain  was  that  of  her 
mother.  There  was  something  familiar  in  this  scout's 
appearance.  He  turned  slowly,  showing  his  face  in 
distant  profile,  and  she  knew  him  for  Koska  of  the 
Brules. 

Instantly  a  new  terror  possessed  her.  This  man 
was  a  traitor,  who  had  struck  at  his  own  people. 
He  had  brought  the  white  soldiers  to  wreak  destruc- 
tion among  Dakotas !  Death,  any  fate,  was  better 
than  to  fall  into  his  hands  and  instinct  clamoured  that 
he  was  searching  for  her  and  no  other. 

It  was  at  this  moment  that  the  storm  which  had 
been  threatening  burst  upon  the  valley.  Rain  fell  in 
torrents  and,  driven  by  a  high  wind,  beat  upon  the 
ground  until  a  mist  arose  which  blurred  all  objects  in 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       103 

the  distance.  This  was  good  for  hiding  the  trail. 
Tokala  retreated  from  the  willows  to  the  creek  chan- 
nel. A  low  bank  and  the  falling  rain  were  her 
shield.  Stooping  until  her  face  almost  touched  the 
current  she  waded  up-stream,  making  what  speed  she 
could.  Her  eyes  scanned  each  turn  of  the  banks. 
On  her  left  the  hills  were  seamed  with  deep  runs  and 
ravines.  Some  of  these  waterways  cut  through  the 
valley  to  the  channel  of  the  creek. 

The  instinct  of  the  wild  was  Tokala's  and  with 
that  guide  she  chose  her  line  of  flight  along  the  bot- 
tom of  a  shallow,  grass-grown  ravine.  As  she  ran 
the  roar  of  the  storm  was  deafening.  Thunder,  wind 
and  rain,  battled  with  the  earth,  but  her  fear  of  cap- 
ture was  greater  than  her  fear  of  the  fire-arrows  and 
the  awful  voices  of  the  angry  gods.  She  reached  the 
hills  and  ran,  as  the  fox  runs,  keeping  always  the  rise 
of  the  ground  between  herself  and  the  line  of  the 
enemy's  sight.  She  circled  and  doubled  among  the 
foot-hills  until  at  last  the  heights  were  passed  and 
then  she  sped,  as  straight  as  might  be,  to  the  west. 
After  a  time,  and  much  exhausted  with  beating 
against  the  winds,  she  found  shelter  in  a  rough  coun- 
try where  there  was  thick  chaparral  of  sage-bush 
upon  the  hills. 

Upon  a  flat  promontory,  which  overlooked  the 
slant  scarps  and  commanded  a  view  of  three  narrow 


104       HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

valleys,  and  in  a  dense  thicket  of  tall  sage,  she  found 
such  cover  as  the  coyote  seeks.  With  the  rain  yet 
beating,  the  wind  roaring,  and  voices  of  thunder  birds 
still  muttering,  she  did  not  fear  to  cry  aloud,  bewail- 
ing her  fate.  She  sat  upon  the  watered  earth  and 
mourned  as  those  mourn  who  are  without  hope. 
Having  no  blanket,  she  untied  her  braids  and  let  fall 
their  tresses  covering  her  face  and  body.  She  put 
earth  upon  her  head. 

"  Ina,  my  mother — Ate,  my  father — they  are 
dead.  O  Wakan  Tanka,  pity  me,  pity  me  ! "  she 
wailed  in  despairing  cadences.  "  O  Maka,  Mother 
Earth  ! — be  merciful — take  me  to  your  bosom.  Lo, 
I  am  bereft — there  is  none  left — I  die  because  of 
this.  O  Mother  Earth — be  very  pitiful — let  me  not 
suffer." 

Thus  she  cried  piteously  until  the  rain  ceased,  the 
winds  died,  and  the  mutter  of  thunders  fell  away  to  a 
far-off  echo  as  of  drum  beats.  When  the  air  was 
still  and  the  sun  shone,  caution  returned.  Believing 
that  her  kindred  had  perished  Tokala  had  no  wish  to 
live ;  she  feared  only  to  be  taken  alive  by  the  enemy. 
So  she  sat  until  the  sun  was  high,  shapeless  and  im- 
movable, enveloped  in  woe.  There  came  to  her  ears 
only  the  twitter  of  bush  birds,  the  rustle  of  tiny  four- 
foots,  and  the  harsh,  ominous  croak  of  evil  creatures 
winging  their  way  whither  the  dead  awaited. 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       105 

The  sun  was  slanting  westward  when  the  stricken 
one  aroused.  Something,  her  wilderness  instinct, 
spoke  to  her  telling  her  that  all  were  not  lost.  Truly 
some  one,  not  the  enemy,  was  at  hand.  She  uncov- 
ered her  head  and  listened  intently,  but  heard  only 
the  drumming  of  her  heart.  Finally  she  crept  to  the 
edge  of  the  bush  and  peered  out  upon  the  flat  lands. 
At  that  point  she  saw  no  living  creature  save  an  an- 
telope grazing  on  the  hill  slope.  Yet  so  certain  was 
she  of  human  nearness  that  she  made  her  way, 
through  the  covert,  to  the  opposite  brow  of  the 
promontory.  Her  eyes  were  quickly  rewarded. 
Upon  a  flat  below,  at  a  distance  of  two  or  three  bow- 
shots, a  man  and  horse  were  moving.  The  man  was 
following  his  animal,  evidently  wishing  to  catch  the 
pony  which  had  a  travois  attached.  They  were 
coming  toward  her  and  the  man  moved  haltingly  as 
though  lamed  from  a  wound.  While  she  was  looking 
and  wondering  the  horse  turned  aside,  bringing  into 
full  view  the  limping  figure  behind.  It  was  her 
brother  Keyahanhi. 

Tokala  felt  no  surprise.  It  appeared  that  she  had 
known  from  the  first  that  it  was  Keyahanhi  of  whose 
coming  she  had  been  apprised.  A  calm  peace  per- 
vaded her  soul.  It  was  the  Taku  Wakan,  God  of 
the  Four  Winds,  who  had  sent  a  message  to  her  un- 
derstanding.    Who  else  but  this  powerful  one  could 


106        HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

have  preserved  the  lame  brother?  Surely  no  one. 
She  questioned  not  in  doubt  but  prayerfully,  putting 
her  trust  in  the  manifest  worker  of  mysteries. 

In  the  calm  mood  of  this  faith  she  made  her  way 
down  the  hill.  Keyahanhi,  intent  upon  catching  his 
pony,  which  contrarily  moved  just  fast  enough  to 
keep  beyond  his  reach,  did  not  see  her  until  she  had 
come  quite  near.  Then,  being  well-nigh  exhausted, 
he  fell  to  the  earth  where  he  reclined  upon  an  elbow 
and  looked  at  her  with  far-away  eyes. 

"  My  brother,"  she  said,  "  where  are  our  people  ? 
Tell  me  who  escaped." 

He  still  gazed  at  her  dully.  "  I  am  very  tired,"  he 
said,  "  chasing  this  horse.  I  wish  you  would  catch 
him  for  me.     I  do  not  know  if  any  have  escaped." 

Mechanically  the  girl  set  about  catching  his  pony. 
The  contrary  beast  kept  away  for  a  time  but,  in  one 
of  its  turns,  she  ran  swiftly  and  leaped  upon  the 
travois  and  instantly  the  animal  became  docile,  halt- 
ing at  command.  She  drove  back  to  Keyahanhi, 
dismounted,  secured  the  lariat  and  tied  it  to  a  bush. 

She  seated  herself  by  her  brother.  "  Tell  me,"  she 
said,  "  how  you  got  away  from  those  wicked  soldiers. 
I  think  the  Very  Mysterious  One  has  surely  aided 
you." 

Keyahanhi  answered  speaking  in  dull,  indifferent 
monotone.     "  When  we  heard  of  the   enemy,"    he 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       107 

said,  "  I  seized  my  bow  and  quiver.  I  wished  to 
fight,  defending  the  teepee.  My  mother  ran  and 
hitched  a  travois.  She  is  very  strong.  She  seized 
me  and  put  me  in  the  travois.  Then  Ina  struck  my 
horse  fiercely  with  the  quirt,  driving  him  across  a 
creek  ford.  It  was  then  that  the  bullets  of  the  big 
gun  burst  and  my  horse  ran  away.  He  ran  up  the 
creek  and  toward  the  hills.  The  soldiers  were 
charging  across  the  valley.  One  saw  me  and  came 
in  pursuit.  My  horse  ran  very  swiftly  but  the  soldier 
came  nearer,  shooting  at  me  with  a  short  gun.  He 
did  not  hit  me  but  came  close  and  I  turned  about  in 
the  travois  and  sent  an  arrow  into  his  horse,  which 
fell  and  threw  him  headlong.  Then  I  pricked  my 
pony  with  the  tooth  of  an  arrow  and  he  ran  a  long 
way  in  these  hills.  At  last,  when  I  was  looking  back, 
the  horse  jumped  a  deep  ditch  and  I  was  thrown 
from  the  travois.  I  crawled  out  of  the  water  and  lay 
for  a  time  on  the  bank  of  this  ditch,  wishing  that  the 
enemy  would  come  and  make  a  finish  of  me. 

"  The  Big  Knives  did  not  come  and  so  I  got  up 
and  followed  my  horse,  using  my  bow  to  assist  me 
in  walking.  I  found  the  pony  in  this  valley  and  was 
trying  to  catch  him  as  you  have  seen." 

When  he  had  finished  talking  Keyahanhi  rested. 
He  lay  upon  his  back  looking  into  the  sky.  Tokala 
said    nothing.      She    again     veiled    her    face    and 


108       HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

shoulders  in  her  hair  and  sat  with  her  chin  upon  her 

bosom. 

****** 

When  grief  and  despair  have  done  their  utmost 
hunger  and  thirst  yet  remain  to  healthy  natures. 
The  sun  was  approaching  near  the  earth  when 
Keyahanhi  aroused  from  sleep.  "  Sister,"  he  said, 
"  I  am  very  hungry ;  let  us  find  some  roots." 

Tokala  arose.  Her  cheeks  were  tear- furrowed  and 
hollow  and  her  eyes  sunken.  She  looked  old  and 
worn.  Her  dress  of  trader's  cloth,  which  she  had  put 
on  that  morning  because  of  the  rain,  was  bedraggled 
with  drying  mud.  The  crown  of  her  head  was  en- 
circled with  baked  clay.  She  had  heard  Keyahanhi 
as  one  listens  to  voices  in  a  dream.  He  got  to  his 
feet,  untied  his  pony  and  repeated  his  request  in  a 
querulous  voice. 

"  Come,"  he  said,  "  let  us  go  from  here.  There  is 
nothing  at  this  place." 

He  got  into  his  travois,  Tokala  mounted  the  horse, 
and  they  set  out,  going  up  a  valley  to  the  northwest. 
They  travelled  until  sunset,  stopping  only  to  drink  at 
the  roily  waters  of  a  run.  They  had  now,  while  it 
was  still  light,  come  upon  a  grassy  plain  lying  at  the 
foot  of  some  hills.  Here  the  green  tops  of  edible 
roots  attracted  their  attention.  They  halted  and  dug 
a  quantity  of  bulbs   and  tubers  of  which  they  ate 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       109 

freely.  Here  they  camped  for  the  night  in  a  thicket 
of  young  timber.  The  travois  had  been  packed  with 
several  robes  and  a  number  of  household  utensils  and 
they  were  able  to  make  comfortable  couches  for  their 
rest. 

In  the  morning  each  felt  some  renewal  of  life  and 
hope. 

"  Ho,  sister,"  said  Keyahanhi, "  we  must  now  travel 
steadily  in  that  direction,"  pointing  to  the  north- 
northeast.  "  Han,  han,"  she  said,  "  that  is  right, 
brother."  The  instinct  of  the  migrating  bird  was  that 
of  these  children  of  the  wilderness.  On  the  Smoky 
River  there  was  yet  a  large  town  of  Oglalas,  the  vil- 
lage of  Spotted  Tail ;  and  there,  if  they  could  succeed 
in  reaching  it,  they  knew  that  they  should  finally 
meet  any  survivors  of  their  own  people. 

All  that  day  they  travelled  in  listless  silence,  stop- 
ping only  to  dig  roots  or  to  allow  Keyahanhi  to 
shoot  at  the  sage  grouse  which  scuttled  from  cover  in 
their  front. 

"  Brother,  you  are  indeed  a  hunter,"  Tokala  said 
when  she  had  picked  up  one  of  these  birds  with  the 
head  quite  severed  below  its  feathered  ears.  "  Ho, 
that  is  nothing,"  answered  Keyahanhi,  stowing  the 
bird  in  his  travois,  but  the  sister  saw  that  he  was 
pleased  with  her  compliment.  At  night  they  again 
camped  among  the  rough  lands. 


110        HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

On  the  third  morning  they  were  travelling  among 
some  sand-hills  where  were  many  outcroppings  of 
gray  rock.  They  were  near  the  crest  of  a  rise,  when 
Tokala  discovered  a  number  of  horsemen  galloping 
toward  them.  Something  in  the  movement  be- 
trayed them  as  strangers. 

"  Toka  !  The  enemy — we  are  lost !  "  cried  the 
girl.  Keyahanhi  turned  in  the  travois  and  saw  a 
score  or  more  of  horsemen  approaching. 

"  Pawnees  !  "  he  cried,  "  dogs  who  acted  as  scouts 
for  the  white  soldiers."  He  cast  a  swift  glance  at  the 
surrounding  hills.  "  Sister,"  he  said,  "  see  yonder 
point  of  rocks  !  Urge  the  horse  !  Fly — fly  !  let  us 
get  to  that  cover.  When  the  coyotes  reach  us  I  will 
shoot  some  of  them." 

The  words  were  not  out  of  his  mouth  before  Tokala 
was  lashing  their  pony  toward  the  stony  ridge. 
While  she  plied  the  quirt,  Keyahanhi  pricked  the 
horse  on  with  the  point  of  an  arrow.  They  had  been 
travelling  slowly  and  their  animal  was  fresh  and  swift. 
For  a  moment  it  seemed  that  they  might  run  away 
from  their  pursuers,  but  soon  the  double  load  began 
to  tell  upon  their  pony — and  they  were  no  more  than 
five  bow-shots  in  advance  of  the  horsemen  when  they 
reached  the  cover  of  a  crown  of  rocks.  A  heap  of 
loose  sandstone  lay  along  the  crest  of  a  ridge,  com- 
manding its  heights. 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE        111 

Here  was  fighting  cover.  Their  pony  was  hastily 
made  fast  to  a  pine  stump  ;  and  Tokala,  working 
with  swift  certitude,  piled  loose  stones  in  front  of  a 
niche  in  a  low  ledge.  Almost  incredibly  soon  she 
had  made  a  stronghold  which  no  man  would  care  to 
approach  so  long  as  Keyahanhi  had  arrows  in  his 
quiver.  Here  they  might  hope  to  hold  out  for  a 
time  unless  the  enemy  should  rush  upon  them  in  a 
body. 

It  soon  appeared,  however,  that  the  strange  war- 
riors had  no  such  design.  These  halted  at  a  height 
of  the  hill  and  at  a  respectful  distance.  Keyahanhi 
counted  them  on  his  fingers. 

There  were  twenty-six  men. 

"  Sister,"  said  the  lad,  "  they  are  all  tried  warriors. 
They  are  strangers,  and  I  think  they  wish  to  take  us 
alive." 

Tokala  said  nothing.  Her  face  was  set,  strong  and 
resolute  with  some  hard,  inner  purpose.  When  a 
warrior  separated  from  the  dismounted  group  and 
came  toward  them,  holding  up  a  hand,  she  knew 
whom  it  was.  She  knew  also  that  Keyahanhi  must 
soon  recognize  the  man,  although  he  bore  himself 
proudly  as  a  chief. 

"  Brother,"  she  said,  "  do  not  shoot  at  this  one 
whatever  happens.     It  is  indeed  Koska,  the  Brule." 

Keyahanhi  gave  vent  to  a  fierce  exclamation,  then, 


112       HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

seeing  his  sister's  eyes  turned  upon  him  sombrely, 
suddenly  checked  his  wrathful  words.  "  He  is  of  the 
enemy  ?  "  he  said  enquiringly.  Tokala  made  a  ges- 
ture of  assent. 

The  man  had  now  come  near.  With  a  movement 
like  that  of  a  lame  lion  Keyahanhi  lurched  over  the 
barricade.  He  arose  to  his  feet.  His  bow  twanged 
and  its  arrow  sped.  Incredibly  swift  were  his  arm 
movements.  Three  arrows  sang  with  the  spiteful  hiss 
of  feathered  furies  before  Tokala  could  leap  from 
cover  and  catch  his  wrist. 

Her  interference,  however,  was  needless.  The 
Brule  had  stepped  aside  three  times,  and  the  very  ac- 
curacy of  their  aim  enabled  him  to  dodge  the  shafts 
with  ease.  He  made  no  hostile  move  but  held  his 
arms  aloft,  with  palms  down,  making  the  extreme 
sign  of  amity.  This  pacific  action,  rather  than 
Tokala's  interference,  saved  Keyahanhi  from  a  further 
breach  of  the  rules  of  war.  He  sank  back  upon  the 
rocks.  "  Trust  him  not,  sister,"  he  muttered  wrath- 
fully,  "  he  is  a  dog — traitor — poisonous  snake  !  " 

Tokala  stood,  as  became  a  chief's  daughter,  look- 
ing at  her  former  suitor  in  proud  scorn.  The  man 
made  no  move  to  come  nearer  but  raised  his  voice  in 
conciliatory  tones. 

"  I  wish  to  speak  with  the  daughter  of  Yellow-Iron," 
he  said.     "  I  am  not  come  to  do  a  mischief.     See, 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       113 

yonder  are  my  soldiers,  and  I  stand  here  with  no 
weapon  in  hand." 

The  two  saw  that  it  was  indeed  as  he  said  ;  he  was 
unarmed.  Keyahanhi,  crippled  as  he  was,  flushed 
hotly  to  note  that  he  had  assailed  a  man  in  such 
case.     Nevertheless  his  anger  flamed  out  again. 

"  Go  away,  dog  of  a  Brule — spy  of  the  enemy — 
carrion  eater  !  We  want  nothing  to  do  with  you  !  " 
he  cried  shrilly. 

"  Not  so,  brother,  not  so,"  urged  Tokala.  "  This 
man  knows  if  any  of  our  people  are  living.  I  will  go 
forth  to  talk  with  him.     If  he  attempt  treachery " 

"  I  will  shoot  the  skunk,"  growled  Keyahanhi. 

Tokala  again  turned  sombre  eyes  upon  his  face. 
"  Aim  not  your  arrow  at  him,"  she  said  ;  "  slay  me." 

"  I  will  do  even  that  if  it  be  necessary,"  said  the 
brother.     "  Go  out  to  him  then,  but  not  too  near." 

Tokala  turned  from  him  and  walked  toward  the 
Brule  slowly,  as  one  who  goes  to  parley  with  an 
enemy.  At  a  little  distance  in  his  front  she  took  a 
seat  upon  a  boulder,  gazing  at  him  with  level  eyes. 
"  I  wish  to  learn  of  my  people,"  she  said,  "  nothing 
else." 

The  Brule  stood  for  a  moment,  looking  at  her 
earnestly,  weighing  his  words.  Tokala  met  the  gaze 
with  a  face  unyielding  in  flinty  hostility.  Though 
he  wore  no  feathered  bonnet,  bore  no  arms,  she  saw 


114        HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

that  this  man  had  become  a  chief.  His  buckskin 
shirt  was  fringed  with  scalp-locks,  and  in  his  bearing 
there  spoke  the  warrior  of  deeds,  victor  in  many  bat- 
tles. Had  she  not  looked  upon  him  as  a  traitor  her 
heart,  after  the  manner  of  her  kind,  must  have  held 
him  in  honour. 

He  remained  standing  erect,  and  presently  he 
spoke.  "  Daughter  of  a  chief,  some  of  your  people 
are  killed,"  he  said, "  but  many  are  alive.  Your  father 
is  living  and  the  mother  of  Keyahanhi.  The  Long 
Knives  have  taken  them  captive ;  but  they  will  be 
spared  and  sent  home  safely.  This  has  been  pledged. 
I  was  not  at  fault  in  this  matter."  He  spoke  with 
great  earnestness.  "  I  would  have  saved  your  people 
from  attack  if  I  had  known  in  time." 

"  I  did  not  come  before  you  to  hear  about  your 
doings  ;  "  said  Tokala  sternly,  "  I  wish  only  to  know 
who  of  my  kin  are  living." 

He  made  a  strong  gesture  of  appeal.  "  Many  of 
them  aref  living,"  he  said.  "I  do  not  know  of  all. 
Red  Cloud's  village  suffered  greatest  loss.  When 
they  tol$  me  you  were  not  among  the  captives,  I  has- 
tened to  search  for  you.  Daughter  of  a  chief,  your 
trail  was  well  hidden.  I  and  my  scouts  made  many 
circles  and  only  last  night  discovered  the  travois 
tracks. 

"  My  men  are  Absaroke  and  I  am  of  them,  their 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       115 

chief.  Your  people  made  me  thus.  Listen,  hear  me 
in  my  defense,  of  which  I  will  speak  to  no  one  but 
you." 

He  paused.  There  was  that  in  his  solemn  and 
earnest  manner  which  seemed  to  compel  attention. 
Tokala  considered  gravely  for  a  time,  and  then  she 
said,  "  Speak." 

"  Waste  !  Daughter  of  a  chief,  last  year  the  Ab- 
saroke  took  me  captive  after  I  had  fought  and  over- 
come a  number  of  men.  These  Kangi  treated  me 
with  great  generosity.  After  I  had  slain  two  of  their 
men  they  invited  me  to  join  them  against  their  ene- 
mies. I  did  so  and  we  fought  the  Blackfeet  with 
success,  taking  scalps  and  many  horses.  This  was 
good ;  but  when  the  snows  began  to  melt  my  heart  was 
sick  for  my  people.     I  wished  to  go  homeward. 

"  I  spoke  to  the  chiefs  about  this  and  they  said, 
'  Go,  we  will  not  detain  you  against  your  will.'  They 
gave  me  a  fine  horse  and  a  war-dress.  '  Tell  the 
Sioux  of  your  deeds/  they  said,  *  and  of  how  the 
Kangi  have  treated  you.  Those  people  ought  now 
to  make  peace  with  us.'  So  my  heart  was  glad.  I 
went  homeward  singing. 

"  What  happened  ?  Listen.  When  I  had  told  the 
truth  among  the  Brules  these  treated  me  with  scorn. 
They  said, '  Lo,  see  what  a  great  liar  this  fellow  has 
become !     Where   are   the   Oglalas   whom   he   was 


116       HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE 

chasing  around  ?  Doubtless  one  of  their  strong  men 
has  taken  a  war-bonnet  and  scalps  of  the  Kangi  and 
this  fine  dandy  has  stolen  the  property.  Fie  on  him  ! ' 
These  things  they  said,  abusing  me  until  my  father 
and  kin-folk  no  longer  believed  what  I  had  told. 

"  I  went  away  from  those  people.  I  said, '  I  am  an 
Absaroka.'  I  kept  repeating  to  myself  *  I  am  an 
Absaroka.'  I  prayed  to  my  Tunkan,  and  it  was  so, 
and  I  returned  to  my  people  and  led  a  war-party 
against  the  Cheyennes.  We  rode  very  quickly  far 
to  southward. 

"  These  are  my  soldiers."  He  swept  a  hand  to- 
ward the  distant  group.  "  They  are  tried  men  who 
know  the  trails  and  where  to  seek  the  enemy.  Yet 
we  fell  into  an  evil  snare.  A  war-party  of  Comanches 
had  killed  some  white  persons  on  their  Yellow  River 
road.  We  found  the  trail  of  these  Comanches  and 
camped  to  consider  whether,  being  a  small  party,  we 
should  follow  them  to  their  village.  We  did  not 
know,  at  that  time,  that  these  men  had  attacked  a 
wagon  train.  Thus  a  great  company  of  Long  Knife 
soldiers  came  upon  us  suddenly.  We  were  sur- 
rounded. Seeing  that  we  were  lost  we  made  the 
peace  sign.  Thus  these  Long  Knives  of  the  Big 
Father  discovered  that  we  were  not  the  ones  who 
had  destroyed  some  wagon-soldiers.  They  were  on 
good  terms  with  the  Crows  and  they  wished  my  men 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE       117 

to  go  with  them,  acting  as  scouts.  I  was  unwilling 
but  my  men  were  eager  to  go — I  could  not  restrain 
them." 

He  stooped  to  the  earth  and,  filling  his  hands  with 
dust,  poured  it  upon  his  head. 

"  Thus,"  he  continued,  "  your  people  and  the 
Kiowas,  who  were  innocent,  were  attacked.  The 
Comanches  had  escaped  and  the  White  Soldiers  did 
not  know.  Had  I  been  acting  as  scout  this  could 
not  have  happened.  But  I  wished  to  do  nothing.  I 
was  riding  among  the  hindmost  when  the  attack  be- 
gan. When  I  discovered  that  we  were  fighting  the 
Oglalas  I  rushed  to  the  White  Chief  and  told  him. 

"  Listen,  daughter  of  a  chief,  you  may  tell  that 
lame  youth,  who  is  so  fierce  with  his  arrows,  that  I 
saved  the  Omaha  Woman  from  death.  The  Long 
Knife  who  would  have  stabbed  her  had  my  arrow 
through  his  chest,  though  none  saw  the  act." 

He  had  been  walking  back  and  forth  with  chiefly 
bearing  as  he  talked.  He  now  suddenly  unbent  and 
dropped  upon  the  ground,  sitting  at  ease. 

Tokala's  face  had  softened  as  the  narrative  pro- 
ceeded. She  knew  that  this  man  spoke  the  truth. 
She  did  not  need  to  recall  that  a  war-party  of  the 
Comanches  had  gone  north  to  strike  at  the  Pawnees 
and  that  these  had  returned  the  night  before  their 
village  teepees  had  been  struck.     She  saw  the  ex- 


118       HOW  HOSTILES  WEKE  MADE 

patriated  one  as  he  was,  the  proud  and  upright 
warrior  whom  an  evil  fate  had  separated  from  his 
people.  Understanding  how  he  must  have  suffered, 
as  he  sat  humbly  before  her,  her  eyes  were  lifted  and 
rested  upon  his  face  and  the  light  in  them  was  as 
the  warm  glow  of  a  summer  morning.  He  responded 
to  this  after  the  manner  of  the  natural  man. 

He  stretched  his  hands  toward  her  in  a  quick 
gesture  of  appeal.  "  Heart's  Desire,"  he  said, "  I  am 
no  longer  a  Dakota.  Koska  the  Brule  is  dead  and 
there  lives  one  born  of  full  stature  and  with  war- 
weapons  in  his  hands.  That  one  is  Cloud  Chief  of 
the  Absaroke. 

•'«  Heart's  Desire,  among  the  Oglalas  your  couch  is 
soft ;  you  are  clothed  in  swan's-down  and  fawn-skins 
and  wear  beautiful  ornaments.  The  daughter  of 
Yellow-Iron  is  beloved.  The  hearts  of  the  dwellers 
laugh  when  her  voice  is  heard  in  the  teepee. 

"  Heart's  Desire,  listen  yet  a  little  longer.  The 
Absaroke  live  among  the  mountains  where  no  ene- 
mies can  come  near  them.  These  people  are 
wealthy,  owning  a  great  country  and  many  ponies 
and  fine  lodges.  Among  them  the  wives  and  maid- 
ens are  treated  well.  The  teepee  of  Cloud  Chief  is 
empty.  No  woman  has  lifted  the  tiyopa  nor  stepped 
within.  The  Absaroke  are  waiting  to  welcome  the 
fairest  among  Oglala  maidens." 


HOW  HOSTILES  WERE  MADE        119 

He  ceased  speaking,  for  Tokala's  face  had  grown 
cold  and  the  light  had  gone  out  of  her  eyes.  She 
arose  and  drew  herself  to  her  full  height. 

"  I  am  a  Dakota,"  she  said  coldly,  "  I  am  a 
Dakota,"  and  she  turned  her  back  upon  him  and 
went  to  Keyahanhi. 

The  brother  had  watched  the  two  with  weapons  in 
hand.  His  ear  had  caught  something  of  the  Brule's 
talk.  "  What  has  this  wolf  of  the  Crows  been  say 
ing,  sister  ?  "  he  asked  sullenly. 

"  Call  him  not  wolf, "  answered  Tokala  with 
anger.  "  He  is  not  of  our  enemies  and  he  has  suf- 
fered enough  at  the  hands  of  Dakotas." 

One  of  the  tenets  of  Keyahanhi's  faith  was  perfect 
trust  in  Tokala,  in  her  high  and  serious  moods.  He 
marvelled  but  accepted  her  dictum ;  for  she  had 
spoken  with  a  flash  of  the  eye  and  with  unwonted 
vehemence. 

"  Hun-hun-he  ! "  he  exclaimed,  "there  be  many 
mysteries  in  the  world." 

"  Now  you  speak  with  truth,"  said  Tokala. 

At  this  moment  they  heard  a  voice  calling  to  them 
and  turned  to  see  their  late  visitor  standing  at  some 
distance.  He  held  three  arrows  above  his  head  for  a 
moment,  then  stooped  and  thrust  their  points  into 
the  ground  ;  and  so  leaving  them,  standing  in  a  row, 
he  wheeled  and  walked  away  to  his  men. 


IX 
CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD 

ON  every  hand,  clean  to  the  blue  line  of  the 
horizon,  stretched  the  green  velvet  blanket 
of  the  Moon  of  New  Grass;  and  often 
Tokala's  pony  trod  upon  dainty  flowers  which  had 
delighted  her  eyes. 

She  "rode  happily  on  this  day.  Her  heart  was 
singing.  She  and  Keyahanhi  had  reached  safely  the 
borders  of  their  own  green  prairies.  Although  they 
were  yet  far  from  the  Smoky  River  it  seemed  like 
getting  home,  this  coming  off  the  dusty,  yellow-grass 
lands  into  the  north  country.  The  river  of  disaster 
had  been  left  many  suns  behind  and  Tokala's 
thoughts  turned  to  the  new  life  to  be  taken  up  at  the 
home  village. 

She  had  mourned  truly  for  the  Buffalo  Woman  ; 
but  news  that  her  father  and  other  relatives  were 
living  and  unhurt  had  taken  the  edge  off  her  grief. 
She  had  loved  her  mother  well ;  yet  the  Buffalo 
Woman  had  never  understood  her.  Tokala  had 
gone  to  The  Sky  with  all  such  confidences  as  her 
heart  had  prompted.  The  Omaha  Woman  she  had 
loved   even  more   than  she  had  loved  her   brother 

120 


CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD     121 

Keyahanhi.  And  now  she,  Tokala,  knew  what 
would  happen.  Her  father  would  take  The  Sky  into 
his  lodge  and  Keyahanhi's  mother  would  be  her  own 
mother  indeed.     Ah,  they  would  yet  be  happy. 

There  might  have  been  another  reason,  although  a 
subconscious  one,  for  the  buoyant  feeling  which  this 
day  filled  her  cheeks  and  eyes  with  a  sparkle  not 
born  of  the  soft  breezes  and  the  joy  of  a  day  in  May. 

During  several  suns,  after  their  parting  with  the 
Brule,  once  each  day,  upon  the  rim  of  some  far  hill, 
to  the  right  or  left  of  their  advance,  a  number  of 
horsemen  had  appeared — always  the  same  number — 
arranged  in  a  row  clearly  outlined  against  the  sky ; 
and  always  they  had  remained  in  that  position  until 
the  passing  of  the  travois  laden  pony. 

Then  in  a  rough  country  these  guardian  horsemen 
had  disappeared  and  the  Dakotas  had  seen  no  more 
of  them. 

Tokala  had  said  nothing  nor  seemed  to  notice  this 
daily  attendance  and  Keyahanhi,  knowing  the  way  of 
lovers  among  his  people,  had  also  held  his  peace. 

When,  after  several  days  among  the  hill  lands t 
they  had  travelled  without  seeing  the  Brule's  war- 
party  Keyahanhi  supposed  that  the  Crows  must 
have  grown  weary  of  following  after  the  fancy  of 
their  chief  and  that  all  of  them  had  ridden  away  to 
their  distant  mountains. 


122     CLOUD  CHIEF  ON   GUARD 

Whatever  Tokala  might  have  thought  she  still 
said  nothing ;  but  the  brother  saw  that  she  had  taken 
on  a  soberer  mood  and  that  now  and  then  her  eyes 
turned  involuntarily  to  the  distant  ridges  and  a  wist- 
ful expression  crept  into  her  face. 

And  seeing  her  grow  pensive  Keyahanhi  had  said 
things  to  make  her  laugh  and  forget.  As  a  rule  he 
had  succeeded. 

This  morning,  however,  after  many  days  of  lonely 
travel  he  noted,  upon  the  flat  lands  of  the  Long 
River  country,  his  sister's  gaze  directed  to  the  far 
horizon.  Looking  in  that  direction  Keyahanhi  saw 
a  score  of  specks  moving  like  ants  upon  the  far, 
green  prairie.  And  then  he  saw  the  sister's  cheek 
flush  to  the  colour  of  early  dawn. 

Cloud  Chief  and  his  Crows  were  yet  guarding  the 
trail  of  Tokala  Noni.  Beyond  question  the  Brule 
and  his  warriors  would  hover  within  striking  distance 
until  the  Sioux  maiden  should  no  longer  need  their 
protection.  They  were  now  crossing  the  country  of 
the  Pawnees  and  Keyahanhi,  much  as  he  despised 
one  whom  he  regarded  as  a  traitor  and  deceiver, 
could  not  but  feel  a  sense  of  security  from  this  faith- 
ful following. 

Yet,  such  is  the  natural  reserve  and  secret  working 
of  the  Indian  heart,  neither  brother  nor  sister  would 
appear  to  notice  the  chivalric  attendance  of  the  Brule. 


CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD     123 

They  rode  for  the  most  part  in  silence  but,  now 
and  then,  talking  of  things  farthest  from  the  inner 
consciousness  of  each.  And  presently,  in  a  far-off 
depression  of  the  prairie,  the  specks  of  riders  disap- 
peared. And  somehow  this  disappearance  operated 
to  create  a  flow  of  talk  between  the  two. 

"  Brother,  how  long  do  you  think  it  will  be  before 
we  reach  the  Smoky  River  ?  "  Tokala  asked  at  length. 
In  her  voice  there  was  no  suggestion  of  the  recent 
thrill  that  had  set  the  blood  mounting  to  her  face. 

"  I  do  not  know,  sister,"  Keyahanhi  replied,  "  but 
this  is  a  strange  country  which  I  do  not  remember  in 
our  travel  southward.  I  think  that  we  must,  in  one 
or  two  more  suns,  reach  the  river  of  gray  waters 
and  that  we  will  have  to  swim  our  horse  across. 
When  we  get  there  we  shall  not  be  more  than  the 
travel  of  five  suns  from  home." 

"  And  do  you  think  our  people  will  be  there 
already  ?  "  asked  Tokala. 

"  It  appears  to  me,  little  sister,"  answered  Keya- 
hanhi, "  that  they  will  not  yet  have  arrived.  They 
were  to  go  with  the  white  soldiers  until  some  matters 
could  be  settled.  You  know  how  it  is  when  our  peo- 
ple are  taken  to  the  forts.  There  are  many  councils 
and  there  is  much  talk  before  anything  can  be  done. 
I  think  it  will  be  one  moon  after  our  arrival  before 
our  people  will  all  get  in." 


124     CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD 

Tokala  sighed.  She  was  most  anxious  to  rejoin 
her  family  friends,  and  the  prospect  of  living  upon 
the  charity  of  people  at  Spotted  Tail's  village  was 
most  unwelcome  to  her.  She  was  a  loyal  member 
of  her  clan,  attached  to  them  all  with  the  devoted, 
unselfish  love  of  her  kind.  Unquestionably  this  force 
of  her  nature  had  been  a  large  obstacle  in  the  way 
of  the  Brule's  wooing.  Had  she  been  an  ordinary 
Sioux  maiden  she  might  have  followed,  at  all  hazards, 
the  one  she  loved.  She  was  not  an  ordinary  maiden, 
but  one  most  loyal  to  her  people  in  every  hazard  of 
their  fortunes.  To  her  the  Crows  were  enemies,  as 
were  all  other  peoples  who  had  fought  against  her 
nation,  and  the  patriotic  maiden,  love  as  she  might, 
stood  with  her  own  to  the  end.  Such  was  Tokala, 
"  flower  of  the  Oglalas." 

All  that  day  the  brother  and  sister  rode  in  hopeful 
and  happy  mood,  often  chatting  gaily,  always  taking 
note  of  the  birds  and  animals  and  other  small  life 
which  abounded  along  their  trail.  Keyahanhi's  bow 
and  arrows  were  unfailing  in  supply  of  their  needs 
and  because  of  this  myriad  life  which  seems  to  spring, 
spontaneously,  from  the  soil  in  the  Moon  of  New 
Grass. 

The  sun  was  perhaps  two  hands  high,  and  they 
were  riding  still  upon  the  level  plains,  when  a  sudden 
vast  depression  appeared  in  their  front ;  and  a  broad 


CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD     125 

band  of  flowing  water  stretched  away  to  east  and 
west,  skirted  with  timber  and  dotted  with  islands,  like 
the  sudden  lifting  of  a  scene  from  some  mysterious 
under-world. 

Brother  and  sister  gave  vent  to  joyful  shouts. 
Here  was  the  river  of  gray  waters  indeed !  The 
wide  shallow  river  which  had  its  source  in  the  far 
mountains  and  which  skirted  the  southern  edge  of 
the  Sioux  country. 

Joyously  they  rode  into  the  valley,  frightening  the 
herds  of  antelope  which  hovered  along  the  stream. 
This  was  truly  the  river  of  abundance.  Here  the 
buffalo,  deer  and  antelope  were  usually  to  be  found 
when  their  hunters  could  find  them  nowhere  else. 
And  here  the  great  white  and  gray  cranes  fed  upon 
the  flats,  and  the  wild  geese  and  ducks  floated  upon 
the  current  in  myriads  in  their  season.  Here  also 
were  fruits,  berries  and  plums,  each  in  its  own  proper 
moon,  to  be  found  in  abundance. 

In  all  the  south  land  they  had  travelled  over  there 
was  no  country  so  beautiful,  so  fruitful  as  the  broad 
valley  of  their  own  great  river.  This  stream,  too, 
gave  them  a  sense  of  communication  with  all  the 
known  Indian  world  and  of  vaguely  conceived  coun- 
tries beyond.  For  this  broad  river  came  from  the 
far  mountains  and  trailed  away  to  the  Great  Salt 
Waters  of  tradition.     Inconceivably  vast  and  mighty 


126     CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD 

was  the  stretch  of  the  river  of  gray  waters.  From  a 
distance,  counted  by  moons  and  moons  of  travel, 
their  own  people  had  once  journeyed  along  this  river 
coming  from  the  shore  of  the  sea  of  salt  waters. 

So  the  two  rode  on  entranced,  dragging  the  travois 
across  the  grass-grown  bottom  lands  of  the  Platte. 
They  had  reached  a  mood  of  exaltation  when  the 
senses  are  lulled  to  security.  They  were  too  happy 
to  think  of  danger.  When  they  gained  a  bank  of 
the  river  they  saw  that  the  mountain  floods  had  not 
yet  arrived.  Keyahanhi  was  able  to  mount  behind 
Tokala,  and  their  pony  waded  across  a  current  which 
reached  its  midside.  They  were  two-thirds  of  the 
way  over  when  they  came  upon  a  sand-bar  which 
projected  far  into  the  stream,  extending  from  a  bank 
lined  with  cottonwood  trees. 

"  There  will  be  much  wood  for  our  fire  to-night, 
sister,"  said  Keyahanhi  joyously, "  and  I  will  surely 
kill  some  rabbits  before  the  sun  throws  his  blanket." 

And  Tokala  assented  happily.  She  was  very  sure 
that  the  brother  would  be  able  to  provide  for  their 
needs. 

They  mounted  the  bank  and  rode  among  the  trees 
looking  for  a  suitable  place  to  camp.  A  strong  wind 
was  blowing  in  the  direction  they  had  been  travelling, 
and  this  doubtless  had  much  to  do  with  a  lack  of  dis- 
cernment which  suddenly  brought  them  face  to  face 


CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD     127 

with  enemies.  This  and  their  high  elation  and  the 
knowledge  that  a  friendly  war-party  had  their  move- 
ments under  surveillance. 

They  were  astonished  and  dismayed  when,  coming 
out  from  a  thick  cluster  of  trees,  they  confronted  a 
camp  of  the  dreaded  Long  Knives.  Yet  there  they 
were,  five  pale  faces,  who  instantly  sprang  to  their  feet 
with  levelled  guns. 

Brother  and  sister  were  appalled  and  halted  uncer- 
tainly. They  were  allowed  but  a  moment  to  sit  in- 
active. While  three  of  the  white  men  presented  their 
guns  two  came  forward,  seized  them  roughly  and 
flung  them  off  their  horse. 

In  a  brief  time  the  pair  were  tied  hand  and  foot, 
dragged  into  the  circle  of  the  enemy's  firelight,  and 
each  made  fast  with  back  to  a  tree. 

Their  captors,  after  a  hearty  laugh  among  them- 
selves, calmly  sat  down  to  eat  a  meal  which  had  been 
interrupted. 

Keyahanhi  and  Tokala,  when  the  men  were  busy 
with  eating,  exchanged  glances  of  intelligence.  They 
knew  what  would  happen  to  these  Wasecun,  and  for 
a  moment  there  was  something  like  exultation  in 
their  faces.  Whether  themselves  were  destroyed  or 
not,  just  as  sure  as  Wi,  the  sun,  had  risen  and  set, 
would  these  triumphant,  laughing  enemies  soon  lie 
prone  upon  the  earth. 


128     CLOUD  CHIEF  ON  GUARD 

When  the  eyes  of  any  were  turned  in  their  direc- 
tion the  faces  of  the  Sioux  revealed  nothing. 

After  the  men  had  eaten  supper  one  of  them  pro- 
duced a  pack  of  cards.  They  spread  a  blanket  and 
began  a  game  with  which  Keyahanhi  was  familiar. 
The  Dakota  was  expert  at  several  games  of  cards,  and 
had  picked  up  some  knowledge  of  the  English. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  play  one  of  his  captors 
said: 

"  Now  we'll  play  seven-up  to  see  who  has  the 
girl  and  after  that  we'll  take  care  of  that  hump- 
backed   ! " 

Had  the  men  been  content  with  a  single  game  this 
story  might  never  have  been  written.  They  were 
evidently  in  a  mood  for  amusement  and  the  play  was 
long.  The  captives  had  almost  despaired  of  rescue 
when  the  Brule  and  his  Crows  came.  And  these 
came  in  that  silent  and  unexpected  fashion  in  which 
tragedies  usually  arrive. 

The  last  two  players  had  just  arisen,  one  of  them 
with  a  bitter  laugh  and  gesture  of  chagrin,  when  all 
the  near  tree  trunks  spat  fire  and  whistling  sticks. 

Two  men  sank  in  their  tracks ;  one  fell  across 
their  camp-fire  and  the  others  were  transfixed  with 
arrows  as  they  fled.  Most  cunning  had  been  the  ap- 
proach of  the  Brule  and  his  Crows. 


X 

ORIGIN    OF   A   SUN-DANCE 

THE  day  was  perfect.  The  Moon  of  New 
Grass  had  returned  and  the  soft  light  of  the 
sun  fell  upon  all  the  prairies ;  also  it  fell 
upon  a  great  circle  of  teepees  pitched  upon  the  flat 
lands  of  the  Yellow  River.  No  breeze  was  stirring 
and  a  shimmer  of  heat  radiation  rendered  all  objects 
in  the  distance  distorted  as  by  some  spirit  hand. 
Far-away  trees  and  hills  were  lifted  above  an  earth 
horizon  and  made  to  appear  as  the  woods  and  hills 
of  skyland  territory. 

On  this  day  Tokala  had  gone  with  her  little  brother 
away  from  the  Sioux  villages  at  the  Sun  Dance,  and 
had  wandered  among  the  sand-hills  which  overlooked 
the  outlying  stretches  of  the  Smoky  River.  Why 
she  had  strolled  so  far  from  the  active  life  of  the  great 
town  Tokala  could  not  have  told. 

She  had  taken  with  her  a  small  half-brother  Ota, 
Ota  the  Beautiful,  as  he  had  come  to  be  called  among 
the  Oglalas. 

Ota  was  the  first-born  of  Yellow-Iron  and  The  Sky 

and  because  his  father  had  said  at  his  birth,  "  Now 

129 


130      ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE 

we  shall  have  plenty  of  boys,"  the  mother  had  named 
him  Ota,  which  means  plenty. 

Tokala,  overfond  of  the  little  lad,  seldom  walked 
without  him.  Sometimes  she  carried,  sometimes  she 
led  the  plump  and  naked  urchin,  a  small  edition  of 
his  Omaha  mother. 

Seated  in  the  sand  on  this  occasion,  she  delayed 
her  return,  waiting  for  Ota  to  play  out  his  play  as 
Indian  babies  wish  to  do  when  their  feet  fall  in  the 
sands  of  the  Smoky  River.  To  and  fro  the  tiny  fel- 
low ran,  his  feet  sinking  deep  in  the  white  sands,  his 
brown  body  glinting  in  the  sun,  his  broad,  comely 
face  flushed  with  unwonted  exercise. 

It  wanted  only  the  devoted  admiration  of  his  sister 
to  induce  the  young  one  to  perform  all  the  cunning 
tricks  of  an  intelligent  Indian  baby. 

He  plunged  forth  and  back  in  the  sea- waves  of 
sand ;  he  sat  down  in  the  midst  of  them  and  piled 
about  his  brown  legs  heaps  which  he  pretended  were 
teepees.  Each  of  his  feet  represented  five  occupants 
of  a  teepee;  each  toe  in  his  imagination  was  war- 
rior, woman,  youth  or  child. 

Again,  with  wrinkles  creasing  his  fat  sides  as  he 
bent,  the  tiny  man  traced  furrows  which  were  to  him 
rivers,  trails,  mountains — all  the  phenomena  of  the 
landscape  which  his  infantile  mind  had  been  able  to 
grasp.     Again  he  piled  heaps  to  form  a  village  of 


ORIGIN   OF  A  SUN-DANCE      131 

teepees  and  other  little  heaps  which  represented 
ponies,  and  still  others  for  buffaloes  and  their  hunters. 
All  the  life  of  his  wild  tribe  the  youngster  mapped 
out  and  mimicked  in  the  sands. 

This  play  the  fond  sister  looked  upon  with  doting 
eyes.  The  little  plump  body,  the  perspiring  face  of 
the  sweating  infant,  marching  about  and  toiling, 
called  forth  the  visible  glow  of  self-sacrificing  love. 

There  was  in  all  the  Oglala  village  no  person  nor 
object  before  which  Tokala  might  sit  in  worship  as 
before  this  little,  fat,  waddling  brother.  Almost  he 
was  her  god,  the  sum  of  all  that  her  longing,  her 
primitive  nature,  had  conceived  as  the  object  of  her 
life. 

Not  until  the  exhausted  lad  slept  did  her  eyes  stray 
to  the  flats  below  where,  in  a  vast  circle,  were  spread 
the  conical  teepees  of  a  number  of  tribes  inhabiting 
the  buffalo  country. 

Here  were  gathered  choice  representatives  of  the 
nations,  large  villages  of  Pawnees,  Crows,  Kiowas, 
Cheyennes  and  Arapahoes  tenting  in  amity.  All 
these  inimical  tribes  had  been  gathered  because  of 
couriers  which  had  been  sent  them  by  the  Dakotas. 
****** 

A  young  man  of  the  Sioux,  of  the  Sans  Arc  tribe, 
had  been  from  his  youth  helpless.  He  had  spent 
years  sitting  within  and  before  his  mother's  teepee, 


132      ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE 

unable  to  arise.  He  had  never  taken  part  in  any  of 
the  games  or  sports  of  boys. 

Because  of  his  sluggish  nature  he  had  been  named 
The  Creeping  Turtle.  For  seventeen  winters  he  had 
borne  the  stigma  of  this  name  and  the  good-natured 
tolerance  of  his  tribesmen.  People  said  that  he  had 
sat  so  long  upon  the  ground  that,  indeed,  he  knew 
not  whether  he  could  walk  or  no. 

In  his  eighteenth  year  a  remark  of  this  sort  aroused 
him.  Two  men  of  the  village  were  passing,  and  he 
overheard  one  of  them  say,  "  That  lazy  Creeping 
Turtle,  if  he  only  thought  so  he  could  get  up  and 
move  about  as  well  as  any  of  us  and  might  help  to 
support  his  poverty-stricken  mother." 

Creeping  Turtle,  brooding  upon  this,  in  the  still- 
ness of  the  night  when  his  mother  was  sound  asleep, 
made  a  violent  effort  and  suddenly  arose  to  his  feet. 
He  was  amazed  and  staggered  weakly  out  of  the 
tiyopa. 

Once  outside  he  walked,  reeling  as  he  went,  thrice 
around  the  teepee,  and  then  sat  down  to  rest. 

"  I  can  walk,"  he  said,  "  I  can  walk,  I  can  walk," 
and  he  repeated  this  again  and  again. 

Presently  he  got  up  and  once  more  reeled  around 
the  teepee ;  and  then  he  crawled  inside  the  tiyopa 
and  lay  down  upon  his  blanket.  All  night  long  his 
heart  sang,   "  I  can  walk,  I  can  walk,  I  can  walk." 


OEIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE      133 

The  boy  continued  to  practice  at  night,  combining 
the  wisdom  of  the  owl  and  the  fox  in  his  movements. 
Days  passed,  and  each  night,  when  his  mother  was 
asleep,  Creeping  Turtle  stole  forth  from  the  lodge. 

Each  night  he  grew  a  little  stronger,  and  his  heart 
mounted  in  exultation.  At  length  he  ventured  away 
from  the  village,  stealing  forth  like  a  thief,  and  made 
a  far  excursion  upon  the  prairie. 

As  he  went  out  from  the  teepees  he  kept  saying, 
"  I  wonder  if  1  can  run,  I  wonder  if  I  can  run."  He 
repeated  these  words  many  times  as  he  walked.  It 
seemed  that  he  could  not  run.  Presently  he  passed 
into  a  deep  coulee  where  there  were  groves  of  timber 
and  many  rocks.  As  he  walked  he  kept  on  repeat- 
ing, "  I  wonder  if  I  can  run." 

Suddenly  Mato-osansan,  the  grizzly  bear,  reared 
among  some  bushes.  The  bear  was  very  close  and 
roared  at  the  boy.  "  Ghur  ! — Aghur-r-r  !  "  said  the 
bear. 

Creeping  Turtle  stopped.  "  I  cannot  run,"  he 
said,  "  and  this  bear  is  going  to  eat  me.  He  may  as 
well  do  it  quickly." 

He  advanced  slowly  toward  Mato-osansan,  and 
the  bear  moved  out  from  the  bushes  and  walked  away. 
Wimima,  the  full  moon,  was  shining  and  the  bear 
could  be  plainly  seen  walking  off. 

Creeping  Turtle  was  surprised  that  this  big  grizzly 


134      ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE 

should  run  away  from  him.  He  had  never  seen  a 
live  bear  and  he  wished  to  look  at  this  one,  so  he 
walked  on  quickly.  The  bear  kept  going  faster  and 
faster  and  presently  Creeping  Turtle  was  running. 
After  a  time  he  was  surprised. 

"  Why — I'm  running  !  "  he  said.  "  Without  any 
weapons  I  have  chased  Mato-osansan ! " 

He  sat  down  to  think  about  this.  For  some  time 
he  continued  sitting  with  his  face  in  his  hands.  Then 
he  went  homeward,  arriving  before  people  had 
awakened. 

Every  night  thereafter  for  two  moons  Creeping 
Turtle  left  the  village  by  stealth,  went  out  upon  the 
prairie  and  into  the  coulees  where  he  leaped  and  ran, 
played  at  games  and  threw  sticks  and  stones  at  the 
rabbits  and  the  birds  which  he  scared  from  cover. 
Continually  he  became  stronger  and  more  able  to 
endure. 

In  his  mother's  teepee  was  an  old  rawhide  lariat 
which  had  belonged  to  his  father.  This  strong  and 
pliable  rope  the  boy  began  to  carry  with  him  on  his 
journeys.  On  one  occasion  he  found  a  deer  path  in 
a  coulee  and  set  his  lariat  for  a  snare.  For  several 
nights  he  did  this  without  success,  and  then  he  dis- 
covered a  herd  of  deer  feeding  and  ran  them  down 
the  ravine.  In  this  manner  he  snared  a  young  buck, 
catching  it  by  the  antlers. 


ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE     135 

When  he  had  the  deer  fast,  however,  he  had  no 
knife  with  which  to  kill  and  flay  the  game.  So  he 
sped  homeward  to  the  village;  he  reached  his 
mother's  teepee  under  cover  of  darkness,  secured  her 
butcher  knife  and  got  away  without  discovery. 

When  he  again  entered  the  coulee  the  sun  was  two 
hands  high.  As  he  came  within  sight  of  the  snared 
buck  a  pair  of  large  red  eagles  were  feeding  upon  its 
carcass.     These  birds  had  killed  the  young  deer. 

The  eagles  took  wing  at  his  approach  and  Creep- 
ing Turtle  stood  looking  after  them.  Bearing  flesh 
in  their  talons  they  flew  to  an  eyrie  under  the  top  of 
a  rock-ledge.  Ho  !  there  were  young  eagles  up  there 
red  eagles  !     His  heart  was  fired  with  desire  to 

capture. 

After  cooking  and  eating  meat  he  took  his  lariat 
and  climbed  above  the  eagle's  perch.  Peering  over 
a  ledge  he  saw,  upon  a  shelf  of  rock,  a  heap  of  sticks 
and  three  well-feathered  birds  sitting  thereon.  The 
eaglets  were  nearly  ready  for  flight,  and  they  were, 
the  red  eagles  so  rarely  found  in  the  Sioux  country. 
The  tail  and  the  finer  wing  feathers  of  such  birds  were 
traded  at  a  pony  each. 

The  young  Sioux  made  a  loop  at  the  end  of  his 
lariat,  lowered  and  swayed  the  rope  to  and  fro, 
striking  the  eaglets  and  causing  them  to  flop  about 
in    alarm.     He    worried   them   until   at   length   he 


136      ORIGIN   OF  A  SUN-DANCE 

was  able  to  swing  his  noose  over  an  outstretched 
wing.  The  bird  he  secured  and  after  a  number  of 
trials  the  second  and  third  were  drawn  up  in  the 
same  way. 

When  Creeping  Turtle  walked  into  the  village  with 
his  captives  people  stared  in  amazement. 

"  Why  he  can  walk ! "  one  cried,  "  and  he  has 
caught  three  red  eagles  !  He  must  have  some  pow- 
erful charm.  Who  among  us  has  done  so  great  a 
thing  in  many  winters  ?  Now  indeed  this  man  will 
be  somebody ! " 

So  they  called  him  Wambli  Yuza,  Catches  Eagles, 
and  by  this  name  he  was  known  thereafter. 

Catches  Eagles  and  his  mother  hardly  knew  want 
again.  The  boy  kept  his  eagles  in  the  teepee  at 
night  and  staked  them  in  front  of  the  door  in  day- 
time. His  mother  or  himself  was  there  continually 
to  guard  them.  The  tribe's  hunters  brought  meat 
and  skins,  for  they  desired  presents  of  the  red  eagles' 
feathers. 

Catches  Eagles  gave  feathers  sparingly  and  only  in 
return  for  gifts  of  equal  value.  He  exchanged  feath- 
ers when  others  had  grown  to  replace  the  ones  he  had 
plucked.  When  he  had  seen  twenty  winters  and  had 
won  the  name  of  soldier,  Wanagi  Wicasta,  a  bow 
and  arrow  maker,  made  him  a  bow  of  buffalo  horns, 
a  weapon  so  stout  that  only  the  strongest  could  bend 


ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE      137 

it.  For  several  moons  Catches  Eagles  practiced 
bending  this  bow  until  he  had  mastered  it.  After  a 
time  he  was  conceded  the  best  bow  shot  among  the 
Sans  Arcs. 

Two  winters  passed  and  Catches  Eagles  went  on  a 
distant  chase  after  buffaloes.  He  and  his  fellows 
were  hunting  on  a  high  sage-bush  plain  and  Catches 
Eagles  became  separated  from  the  others.  He  had 
ridden  a  considerable  distance  when  he  saw  a  buffalo 
bull  come  upon  the  plain.  He  gave  chase,  riding 
swiftly  and  sending  a  number  of  arrows  through  the 
bull's  skin.  The  animal  fell  and  the  hunter  dis- 
mounted and  withdrew  his  arrows.  He  skinned  the 
game,  cut  up  its  flesh,  led  his  horse  into  a  ravine 
where  there  was  water  and  grass  and  picketed  the 
animal.  Then  he  went  to  the  high  ground  where 
there  was  a  cool  breeze  and  lay  down. 

He  slept,  and  while  he  lay  two  Crow  hunters 
crossed  the  ridge.  The  Crows  separated  upon  high 
ground,  and  one  came  near  to  where  the  Dakota  had 
slain  the  bull.  This  one  dismounted  from  his  horse 
and  went  softly  to  peer  into  a  water  coulee,  where  he 
supposed  the  successful  hunter  or  hunters  might  be 
camped.  He  did  not  know  whether  or  not  the 
bull  had  been  killed  by  one  of  his  own  party. 
When  he  discovered  the  Sioux  pony  he  crawled 
swiftly  back   toward    his  own.      This   Crow  was  a 


138      ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE 

coward  and  sought  immediately  to  escape.  Suddenly 
he  came  upon  the  Sioux  lying  among  the  sage 
bushes.  Catches  Eagles  awoke  and  sat  up  rubbing 
his  eyes.  The  Crow  was  frightened.  He  dared 
neither  to  run  nor  to  strike. 

"  How,"  said  Catches  Eagles,  seeing  the  Crow 
upon  hands  and  knees.  He  motioned  the  man  to  be 
seated  beside  him,  and  the  Crow  sat  down  upon  his 
left.     Catches  Eagles  produced  a  pipe  and  tobacco. 

"  How,"  he  said,  "  we  shall  smoke  and  talk  for  a 
time  and  then  we  shall  gamble  for  the  scalp.  See,  I 
have  plum  stones."  He  took  some  from  his  pouch 
and  showed  them.  Catches  Eagles  talked  in  the  trade 
and  sign  language,  and  the  Crow  understood  that  he 
intended  to  throw  plum  pits  to  see  which  of  them 
should  die.  The  stranger  sat  smoking  and  trembling. 
He  gave  the  pipe  to  Catches  Eagles.  While  the 
Dakota  was  lifting  it  to  his  mouth  the  Crow  suddenly 
drew  a  knife  and  cut  him  across  the  abdomen. 
Catches  Eagles  bent  swiftly  forward  and  seized  his 
bow  and  arrows.  The  Crow  had  leaped  to  his  feet 
as  he  struck  and  he  backed  away  shouting  and 
flourishing  his  knife.  Catches  Eagles  could  only 
shoot  bending  forward  lest  he  be  disemboweled. 
Two  arrows  the  Crow  dodged  then  he  turned  to  run 
and  an  arrow  struck  him  in  the  neck.  He  tumbled 
forward  and  died. 


ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE      139 

Catches  Eagles  held  the  skin  of  his  wound  together 
with  one  hand  and  arm,  and  walked  to  the  buffalo's 
carcass.  He  sat  down,  cut  slits  in  the  two  lips  of  his 
wound  and  tied  them  together  with  sinews.  Then 
he  made  a  band  of  the  buffalo's  fresh  skin,  fastening 
it  about  his  waist  with  the  flesh  side  next  his  body. 
Having  done  this  he  counted  a  coup  upon  the  Crow. 
Then  he  took  the  scalp  trophy,  mounted  the  enemy's 
pony  and  rode  away  to  his  camp. 

On  the  way  he  prayed  to  Waniyan  Tanka,  the  Most 
Mysterious,  and  to  Wakinyan  the  spirit  of  thunder, 
making  a  vow.  "  Hear  me,  pity  me,  that  I  shall  re- 
cover from  this  great  hurt,"  he  prayed.  "  If  you  will 
do  so,  I  shall  make  a  sun  dance  and  sacrifice  portions 
of  my  flesh.  In  the  presence  of  my  enemies  I  shall 
do  this." 

It  was  night  when  he  arrived  at  camp  and  told  his 
story  to  fellow  hunters.  These  were  astonished  at 
his  good  fortune.  To  be  wounded  thus  !  To  count 
a  coup  !  To  take  the  scalp  !  To  get  the  man's  horse 
and  his  weapons !  They  made  these  counts  on  their 
fingers.  Did  it  ever  happen  to  any  one  thus  before  ? 
So  they  questioned  each  other  while  Catches  Eagles 
slept  and  no  one  could  remember  having  heard  of 
anything  like  this. 

For  many  suns  Catches  Eagles  stayed  at  the  buf- 
falo camp,  lying  on  his  back.     He  kept  one  position 


140      ORIGIN  OF  A   SUN-DANCE 

until  the  skin  of  his  wound  healed,  leaving  him  whole. 
Then  the  hunters  returned,  laden  with  meat  and 
robes,  and  Catches  Eagles  became  a  noted  person. 
The  young  warriors  signified  their  willingness  to  fol- 
low him. 

A  snow  came  and  went,  and  Catches  Eagles  re- 
membered his  vow.  He  spoke  at  a  council  of  the 
older  men,  repeating  what  he  had  promised  to  the 
Most  Mysterious. 

"  Now,"  he  said,  "  let  us  send  runners  to  the  na- 
tions bidding  them  come  and  dance  the  sun  dance. 
We  shall  make  a  peace  at  that  time  as  has  been  done 
heretofore.  Thus  I  shall  be  able  to  fulfill  my  sacred 
vow." 

The  older  men  agreed  to  this.  "  Han,  han,  han," 
they  said,  "  let  it  be  as  this  young  man  has  said." 
For  they  were  all  agreed  that  Catches  Eagles  should 
become  a  war-chief. 

Runners  bearing  the  peace-pipe  were  dispatched 
among  dwellers  of  the  buffalo  country.  Most  of  these 
people  received  their  couriers  kindly  and  agreed  to 
send  delegations  to  the  Dakotas  in  the  moon  of  best 
grass. 

The  Dakotas  made  ready  for  those  that  were  to 
come.  They  selected  ground  for  the  sun  dance,  raised 
a  semicircular  dance  lodge  and  the  teepee  of  prepa- 
ration.    Catches  Eagles,  because  of  whose  miraculous 


ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE      141 

deliverance    from    death  this    sun   dance   had   been 
called,  was  chosen  master  of  ceremonies. 

Such  was  the  origin  of  this  sun  dance  on  the  Smoky- 
River  (Niobrara)  as  it  is  told  by  old  men  of  to-day — 
men  who  bore  a  part  in  the  full  blood  of  youth. 

Wi,  the  sun,  had  approached  near  to  the  earth 
when  Tokala  and  her  small  charge  descended  from 
the  sand-hills.  They  came  down  the  long  slopes, 
Tokala  leading  the  brother  whose  rest  had  served  to 
fill  his  energetic  body  with  enthusiasm  for  the  jour- 
ney. The  small  one  shouted,  stamped,  and  swayed 
to  and  fro  pulling  at  her  hand  as  he  attempted  to 
rush  after  every  flower,  animal  or  bird  which  came 
within  his  range  of  vision. 

It  was  Tokala  who  was  weary  when  they  reached 
the  flats  of  the  river.  Here  a  new  excitement  awaited. 
Ota,  who  had  seen  three  winters,  knew  the  meaning 
of  a  play  now  making  upon  the  plain  and  insisted 
upon  remaining  to  watch  a  pony  race. 

Tokala  found  a  seat  upon  a  boulder  of  the  white 
rocks,  which  abound  along  the  Smoky  River,  and 
waited  for  the  race.  The  goal  was  not  far  away.  It 
was  another  white  rock  around  which  were  grouped 
numbers  of  gaily  dressed  young  blades  gathered  from 
the  allied  villages.  Five  bow-shots  up  the  valley 
a   group  moved   in   confusion,  as  pigmy   men  and 


142      ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE 

animals,  against  a  red  horizon.  These  were  prepar- 
ing to  start  the  race,  and  just  as  Wi  had  sunk  his 
fiery  disk  behind  the  sand-hills,  like  a  flight  of  pro- 
jectiles, there  issued  from  the  farther  group  a  squad 
of  horsemen.  A  score  of  them,  in  a  wild  route, 
came  tearing  down  the  valley ;  and  Ota,  the  vigor- 
ous infant,  stood  upon  his  rock  and  yelled  like  any 
barbarian  of  them  all. 

One,  two,  three  riders  forged  ahead  of  the  others. 
These  three  were  almost  neck  and  neck  as  they  neared 
the  white  stone  which  marked  their  goal  when  sud- 
denly one  reared  himself  upon  the  bare  back  of  his 
pony  and  wielded  his  quirt  with  superhuman  energy. 

His  fierce  yells  pierced  the  ear,  like  the  screams  of 
an  eagle,  and  he  passed  the  stone  two  lengths  ahead 
of  his  fellows. 

This  one,  swooping  about  in  a  circle  and  shouting 
his  triumph,  discovered  Tokala  upon  her  perch. 

Raising  a  hand  and  shaking  it  aloft  he  advanced 
toward  her,  his  bearing  that  of  a  victor  and  his  face 
darkly  flushed  with  triumph.  His  white  teeth  gleamed 
as  he  saluted.  Sitting  his  horse  proudly  for  a  mo- 
ment he  spoke. 

"  I  have  won  ten  ponies  from  the  Kiowas,"  he  said, 
"  and  at  the  close  of  the  sun  dance  I  shall  tie  them 
all,  with  others,  in  front  of  Yellow-Iron's  teepee." 

Tokala's  face  coloured  redly  with  deep  annoyance. 


ORIGIN  OF  A  SUN-DANCE     143 

"  You  had  better  tie  your  ponies,"  she  said, "  where 
there  is  a  chance  that  they  will  be  accepted." 

It  was  Catches  Eagles  who  had  thus  confronted 
her. 


XI 
PRELIMINARY   AMUSEMENTS 

THE  villages  gathered  for  the  sun  dance  were 
pitched  upon  a  second  bottom  of  the  Smoky- 
River  under  the  shadow  of  Bear  Butte. 
The  meeting  has  since  been  known  as  the  Bear  Butte 
Sun  Dance.  At  this  circle  of  sun  worshippers  more 
tribes  had  come  together  in  amity  than  had  so  met 
in  two  score  of  winters. 

It  was  the  custom  of  each  tribe  of  the  buffalo 
country,  once  in  five  or  more  years,  to  invite  its 
neighbours,  friends  and  enemies  to  attend  a  sun  dance. 
The  laws  of  the  Medes  and  the  Persians  were  not 
more  rigidly  adhered  to  than  an  ancient  rule  of  con- 
duct which  bound  each  member  of  the  inviting  and 
the  visiting  tribes  to  shape  his  conduct  to  the  end  of 
giving  no  offense.  On  the  road  to  and  from  the  sun 
dance  the  visitors  might  travel  in  absolute  safety  from 
attack  by  any  people  which  had  sent  its  delegation. 
These  were  the  great  scenic  gatherings  of  the 
northern  aborigines.  The  teepees  were  pitched  in  a 
circle  a  mile  or  more — sometimes  as  great  as  three 

miles — in  diameter ;  and  the  lodges  were  grouped  in 

144 


PRELIMINARY   AMUSEMENTS       145 

contiguous  villages.  Each  tribe  had  its  allotted  sec- 
tion of  the  circle.  One  opening  only  was  left  for  the 
going  and  coming  of  crowds,  and  this,  by  ancient 
usage,  was  invariably  on  the  north.  In  the  centre 
of  the  greater  circle  was  raised  the  dancing  lodge, 
a  semicircular  enclosure  of  woven  bush,  in  two 
barricades  forming  an  open  court.  Near  to  this 
was  the  teepee  of  preparation  where  the  candi- 
dates, who  proposed  to  make  offerings  to  the  sun, 
were  purified  and  made  ready.  In  the  centre  of 
a  circle,  described  by  the  inner  arc  of  the  dancing 
lodge,  was  set  the  decorated  sun-pole,  around  which 
were  performed  such  feats  of  self-scourging  and  en- 
durance as  has  been  seen  nowhere  since  the  days  of 
the  Flagellants. 

These  pains  of  the  flesh  were  endured  to  win  favour 
of  the  most  powerful  creature  of  the  Most  Mysterious 
— the  life-giving  Sun. 

At  the  Bear  Butte  Sun  Dance  were  gathered,  by 
Dakota  reckoning,  more  than  ten  times  The  Great 
Count,  doubtless  more  than  twenty  thousand  people. 
The  circle,  years  afterwards,  could  be  traced  upon  a 
soil  trampled  by  pony  hoofs  and  moccasined  feet. 
Reaching  from  river  to  sand-hills,  the  complete  cir- 
cuit was  some  five  miles  in  circumference.  Quite 
possibly  there  had  never  been  called  together  repre- 
sentatives of  tribes  covering  so  great  a  reach  of  terri- 


146       PRELIMINARY  AMUSEMENTS 

tory.  Nearly  the  whole  aggregation  of  the  plains 
people  was  represented,  from  the  Yellowstone  to  the 
Rio  Grande.  Of  the  tribes,  who  may  certainly  be 
recorded  as  having  sent  large  delegations,  were  the 
Crows,  the  northern  and  southern  Cheyennes,  the 
Omahas,  Pawnees,  Comanches,  Kiowas,  Utes,  Apaches 
and  Assiniboins. 

That  the  miraculous  recovery  of  a  wounded  Dakota 
should  have  induced  such  a  gathering  was  owing  to 
that  importance  which  is  attached  to  strange  and  ap- 
parently mysterious  manifestations  and  to  the  eager 
interest  of  all  the  tribes  in  this  great  dance.  Yet 
these  sufficient  motives  were  aided  by  momentous 
and  fortuitous  circumstances.  The  plains  folk  had, 
years  since,  awakened  to  danger  at  the  encroachment 
of  hoards  of  aliens  who  had  peopled  the  eastern 
valley  of  the  Great  River.  Here  and  there  a  tribe 
had  raised  its  feeble  hands  to  repel  the  invasion,  and 
all  had  read  their  doom  as  certainly  as  later  they  saw  it 
when  the  iron  horse  drove  across  their  hunting  ground. 
Of  late  reports  had  reached  them  that  the  Long 
Knives  were  fighting  among  themselves,  that  a  great 
war  was  in  progress  toward  the  rising  sun.  Ardently 
they  hoped  that  these  enemies  would  become  so  weak 
from  their  strife  at  home  that  the  Indian  might  hope 
to  hold  his  own.  So  it  was  that  a  slighter  pretext 
might  have  served  to  call  them  together  where,  in 


PRELIMINARY  AMUSEMENTS       147 

good  fellowship,  might  be  formed  a  bond  of  strength 
against  time  of  need. 

A  greater  mind  than  any  at  this  gathering  might 
have  read  the  hand  of  fate  in  the  chain  of  circum- 
stances which  had  led  to  the  making  of  a  powerful 
young  war-chief.  Catches  Eagles  was  not  so  small  in 
mind  as  to  lose  the  significance  of  a  barbaric  inter- 
pretation. He  lived  on  the  heights  of  elation ;  and 
that  his  self-esteem  should  have  towered  mightily, 
before  the  end  of  this  sun  dance,  was  but  natural. 
Yet  the  young  brave  shrewdly  held  himself  in  hand 
and,  in  the  midst  of  the  gatherings  of  grave  chiefs 
and  warriors,  did  not  attempt  to  thrust  himself  into 
their  councils.  He  bore  his  part  with  the  younger 
men  and  won  his  share  of  victories  in  their  contests. 

Before  there  had  been  a  calling  of  the  sun  dance, 
but  when  it  was  certain  that  his  fight  with  the  Crow 
and  the  recovery  from  his  wound  had  made  him  a 
marked  man,  his  mother  had  said : 

"  You  should  now  get  married.  We  have  few  rela- 
tives and  you  will  have  but  little  influence  until 
you  have  increased  our  family  circle.  You  should 
marry  several  sisters  that  you  may  rear  a  large 
family  and  so  become  powerful." 

It  was  the  custom  among  Dakotas,  where  a  man 
took  additional  wives,  that  he  should  marry  the 
younger  sister  of  his  first.     This  was  sometimes  done 


148       PRELIMINARY   AMUSEMENTS 

until  all  of  three  or  more  sisters  were  gathered  into  a 
single  and  closely  knit  family.  Thus  the  Sioux 
mother  had  spoken  out  of  her  wisdom. 

"  I  cannot  marry  among  sisters,"  Catches  Eagles 
had  answered,  "  for  there  is  only  one  whom  I  wish 
to  wed,  and  I  am  not  yet  great  enough  to  carry  pres- 
ents to  her  father's  teepee.  After  the  old  men  have 
granted  my  request  and  have  called  a  sun  dance,  that 
I  may  fulfill  my  vow,  I  will  ask  Tokala  Noni  to  be 
my  wife.  Then  I  shall  belong  to  the  clan  of  Yellow- 
Iron  and  so  shall  have  plenty  of  friends." 

Thus  was  added  another  link  to  the  chain  of  inci- 
dents and  motives  which  led  to  this  gathering. 
****** 

Having  met  in  so  great  a  company,  so  rarely  come 
together,  the  people  were  not  in  a  hurry  for  the  cere- 
monies of  the  sun  dance  to  begin.  On  the  contrary 
they  gave  themselves  up  to  a  season  of  undiluted 
enjoyment.  The  occasion,  like  that  of  some  great 
fair  of  their  civilized  brothers,  called  for  gayety. 
Care-free  and  safe  from  the  lurking  danger,  which 
was  their  inherited  portion,  their  spirits  were  lifted 
into  the  upper  world — the  world  of  light  and  joy  and 
content.  There  were  dances,  horse-races,  ball  games 
and  gambling  to  amuse.  After  Wi,the  sun,  had  set, 
there  was  the  beat  of  drum  and  song  of  the  chant 
which  ran  around  the  teepee  circle  and  swelled  to  a 


PRELIMINAKY  AMUSEMENTS       149 

hum  of  music  which  could  have  been  heard  far  out 
among  the  sand-hills.  On  the  crest  of  Bear  Butte 
one  might  have  sat  and  listened  to  the  roll  of  the 
great  camp's  drums  and  the  shouting  as  to  the  roar 
and  tumult  of  a  distant  battle. 

At  many  points  in  the  circuit  were  gathered  groups 
of  dancers  who,  around  their  elk-skin  drums,  moved 
to  the  measures  and  the  chant  of  tribal  dances,  the 
Omaha  grass  dance,  the  Oglala  moon  dance,  the 
Cheyenne  buffalo  dance,  the  Comanche  snake  dance, 
or  the  whooping  bear  dance  of  the  Assiniboins. 
One  might  choose  his  part  among  all  these  festivi- 
ties ;  for  freedom,  without  license,  reigned  in  the  big 
circle. 

One  evening  in  front  of  Yellow-Iron's  teepee  sat 
the  chief,  Tokala,  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi.  Before 
them — and  for  their  special  delectation  as  it  appeared 
— the  Cheyennes  were  dancing,  assisted  by  many 
members  of  other  tribes,  their  buffalo  dance.  It  was 
a  gay  and  exciting  scene. 

A  fire  had  been  built  of  aromatic  sage  bushes  and 
around  this,  arranged  in  oblong  rows,  were  arrayed 
the  skulls  of  many  buffaloes.  It  was  to  these  buffalo 
heads  that  each  dancer  made  his  offering  of  strings 
of  beads,  of  pipe  and  tobacco,  of  necklaces  or  charms, 
as  he  entered  or  retired  from  the  circle.  Before  these 
he  burned  incense  of  sweet  grass.     Around  the  fire, 


150       PRELIMINARY  AMUSEMENTS 

and  its  ring  of  buffalo  heads  and  heaped-up  offerings, 
the  dance  was  continued. 

This  ceremonial  fete  of  the  northern  Cheyennes 
was  one  of  the  most  fascinating  of  Indian  dances.  In 
this  there  was  nothing  of  the  violent  outbreak  at- 
tendant upon  the  scalp  or  bear  dances.  This  dance 
was  intended  to  propitiate  the  ancient  Great  Grand 
Father  of  buffaloes  upon  whose  favour  the  hunter 
must  depend  for  success.  Unless  his  thoughts 
were  pure,  his  heart  good  and  his  spirit  inclined  to 
generosity,  a  hunter  might  not  expect  the  Great 
Grand  Father  of  buffaloes  to  send  his  children  within 
the  range  of  arrows.  So  the  Cheyennes  performed 
this  dance  in  an  exalted  mood.  They  made  elaborate 
preparation.  First  they  retired  to  their  sweat-lodges, 
stripped  themselves  and  purified  their  bodies.  Each 
then  donned  his  most  costly  ornaments,  his  buffalo 
head-dress,  his  chiefest  necklaces  and  armlets,  his 
most  powerful  charms,  and  only  thus  arrayed  ven- 
tured to  bring  his  offerings  within  the  charmed  circle. 

Such  ceremonies  exalted  the  spirit,  and  the  mind 
was  uplifted  to  look  upon  things  of  the  upper  world. 
All  the  good  spirits  were  invoked  and  the  thunder 
beings  at  this  time  lost  their  power  to  harm.  No 
bolt  could  strike,  no  arrow  reach  a  vital  part,  when 
the  Cheyenne  had  properly  prepared  himself  to  enter 
upon  the  buffalo  dance.     His  bearing,  his  every  at- 


PRELIMINARY  AMUSEMENTS       151 

titude,  proclaimed  his  exalted  mood,  and  his  face  and 
eyes  shone  with  the  spirit  of  benevolence.  Because 
of  its  fascinating  nature,  braves  of  the  visiting  tribes 
— of  imaginative  mood — were  eager  to  join  in  this 
dance.  Thus  it  was  that  the  family  of  Yellow-Iron, 
honoured  by  the  ceremonial  fete  in  front  of  their  own 
section,  looked  upon  a  most  unusual  scene — the 
flower  of  the  young  men  of  all  the  assembled  tribes 
taking  part  in  the  Cheyenne  national  fete. 

Among  those  who  came  on,  dancing  and  retiring 
alternately,  were  three  whose  splendours  of  dress 
were  remarked  and  admired  by  all  onlookers.  These 
were  Dancing  Bear  of  the  Cheyennes,  Cloud  Chief 
of  the  Crows,  and  Catches  Eagles  the  Sans  Arc  mas- 
ter of  ceremonies. 

Dancing  Bear  had  donned  the  trailing  war-bonnet 
of  eagle  feathers  which  is  worn  by  those  entitled,  upon 
such  occasions.  His  head-dress,  however,  was  of  un- 
common quality  and  carried  the  tail  feathers  of  twenty- 
five  bald  eagles.  The  bonnet  was  surmounted  with 
a  buffalo  scalp  and  horns — the  horns  tipped  with 
phosphorus.  His  war-shirt  was  of  elk-skin  painted 
in  figures  of  red  and  green  and  his  triple  necklace 
was  of  elk's  teeth  and  shell  pearls.  His  leggings, 
with  a  "  dancer's  fringe,"  were  rubbed  in  yellow  ochre 
and  beaded  in  the  figures  of  horseshoes  and  of 
hunters  following  the  trail.     Moccasins  and  all  else  in 


152       PRELIMINARY  AMUSEMENTS 

his  dress  were  of  elaborate  pattern  to  match.  He 
carried  a  "  dancing  stick  "  of  buffalo  horn,  the  handle 
of  which  was  decorated  with  ermine  skins  and  col- 
oured ribbons. 

Catches  Eagles  wore  a  gorgeous  bonnet,  a  top- 
dress  of  the  red  eagles'  feathers,  with  a  fringe  and 
trailers  of  scarlet  swan's-down.  His  shirt  was  of 
trader's  red  cloth,  hung  with  fawn-skin  fringes  and 
the  sleeves  were  trimmed  with  hawk  bells.  His  leg- 
gings also  were  of  the  Sioux  pattern,  short,  fringed 
behind,  with  decorations  of  geometric  figures  plaited 
in  porcupine  quills. 

Cloud  Chief  was  resplendent  in  a  dress  which  of- 
fered an  innovation  to  the  customs  and  costumes  of 
the  tribes.  His  shirt  was  of  blue  velvet  with  bands 
of  white  beads  entwined  in  snake-like  twists  around 
the  breast  and  waist ;  the  leggings  were  of  soft  fawn- 
skin  rubbed  in  red  ochre  and  decorated  in  charm-fig- 
ures of  black  beadwork.  The  moccasins  of  yellow 
elk-skin  were  beaded  all  over  the  uppers  in  turquoise 
blue ;  his  arm  bracelets  of  snake-skin  were  plaited  in 
stained  porcupine  quills  and  had  pendants  of  the  down 
and  tails  of  scarlet  tanagers.  His  necklace  was  of 
the  claws  of  grizzly  bears  strung  in  double  rows  and, 
appended  to  this,  was  a  broad  band  of  swan's-down 
stained  in  yellow,  green  and  red.  A  pipe-bone 
breast-plate,  made  of  the   polished   inner  joints  of 


PRELIMINARY   AMUSEMENTS       153 

crane's  wings,  was  strung  with  rows  of  Navajo  silver 
beads  and  fringed  with  hangers  of  buckskin,  spangled 
with  small  shells.  The  crowning  achievement  of  his 
dress  was  not  the  eagle  war-bonnet,  which  fills  the 
requirements  of  the  plains  Indian  for  dressing  the 
head,  but  a  trailing  dress  of  the  tail,  and  the  black- 
tipped,  wing  plumes  of  the  white  crane.  These  he 
wore  in  a  trail  to  his  heels  in  their  unstained  native 
growth,  and  surmounting  them,  upon  the  crown, 
were  two  immense  buffalo  horns,  black,  but  scraped 
so  thin  as  to  seem  almost  transparent. 

This  dress  of  Koska,  one  time  of  the  Brules,  was 
greatly  admired  among  the  onlookers.  They  were 
agreed  that,  upon  the  whole,  Cloud  Chief's  was  the 
finest  costume  of  the  dance. 

Dancing  Bear,  Catches  Eagles  and  Cloud  Chief 
were  all  Tokala's  suitors.  Each  had  announced  to 
members  of  Yellow-Iron's  family  that  he  wished  to 
marry  the  chief's  daughter. 

Of  the  three  Dancing  Bear  was  the  elder,  a  man 
of  some  forty  winters,  whose  Cheyenne  wife  was 
dead.  Dancing  Bear  was  not  a  chief,  but  a  warrior 
of  influence  in  his  tribe,  and  a  man  of  uncommon 
character.  He  was  a  man  of  fine  presence — of  a 
broad,  high  forehead,  deeply  lined  face  and  singularly 
sweet  and  winning  smile.  He  was  in  the  active  prime 
of  life,  a  forceful  speaker  in  council  and  swift  to  take 


154       PRELIMINARY  AMUSEMENTS 

action  once  he  had  adopted  a  plan.  This  man  was 
highly  favoured  of  Yellow-Iron,  to  whom  an  alliance 
by  marriage  with  the  northern  Cheyennes  seemed 
most  desirable. 

The  master  of  ceremonies  has  been  introduced,  and 
Tokala  had  no  more  ardent  admirer  than  this  bold 
and  fortunate  young  man  of  the  Sans  Arcs. 

Cloud  Chief  of  the  Crows,  finding  Tokala  yet  un- 
married, had  been  quick  to  send  a  messenger  and  a 
gift  to  a  brother  of  Yellow-Iron — which  was  the  usual 
custom  among  the  Sioux — saying  that,  at  the  close 
of  the  sun  dance,  he  should  leave  ponies  with  her 
father  and  ask  for  a  speedy  marriage. 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  any  maiden  of  the  sun  dance 
circle  so  sought  in  marriage  must  have  had  a  season 
of  high  pride. 

Until  far  into  the  night  the  dancers  exercised  their 
powers  of  endurance,  moving  to  the  music  of  the  big 
elk-skin  drums.  Cloud  Chief  seemed  a  man  trans- 
formed. There  was  hardly  a  suggestion  of  the  leap- 
ing, shouting  Koska  of  the  moon  dance.  He  did  not 
leap  high  above  his  fellows,  nor  raise  the  mysterious 
voice  which  could  be  heard  beyond  all  others,  but 
danced  silently  gazing  outward  and  away  with  a 
rapt  visage,  moving  with  the  ease  and  grace  of  a 
long  practiced  athlete.  There  was  no  Cheyenne  who 
seemed  to  enter  into  the  spirit  of  his  ancient  and 


PRELIMINARY  AMUSEMENTS       155 

tribal  dance  with  more  perfect  understanding  of,  or 
feeling  for,  its  mystic  nature.  With  quick  compre- 
hension Cloud  Chief  had  grasped  the  technical  meas- 
ures of  the  dance,  and  he  timed  his  steps  in  perfect 
accord  to  the  length  of  the  chant  and  number  of  the 
drum-beats. 

"  Han,  han,  han  !  "  said  Keyahanhi  who  had  watched 
him  closely,  "  he  is  quite  the  finest  dancer  of  them 
all." 

The  Sky  gave  quick  assent  and  Tokala  who,  in 
four  winters  had  not  seen  her  lover,  remained  silent, 
looking  on  with  a  face  in  which  there  showed  no  sign 
of  emotion.  She  was  seated  within  the  shadow  of 
her  mother's  teepee  with  Ota  in  charge,  and  her  at- 
tention was  frequently  called  to  the  shoutings  and  the 
sudden  breaks  for  freedom  of  this  animated  infant. 

To  those  of  his  family  at  hand,  who  understood  the 
significance  of  the  appearance  of  those  three  resplen- 
dent dancers,  the  choice  of  Yellow-Iron,  among 
Tokala's  suitors,  was  quickly  made  apparent. 

Of  the  dancing  of  Cloud  Chief  and  Catches  Eagles 
he  took  apparently  no  heed  but,  on  several  occasions, 
with  Dancing  Bear  in  the  foreground,  he  was  marked 
in  acclaim. 


XII 
LOVE'S   PERPLEXITIES 

NIGHT  had  fallen  in  brilliant  fashion  after 
a  perfect  day  in  the  new-grass  moon. 
Wimima  had  almost  leaped  from  beyond 
the  earth  into  a  limpid  sky.  The  grand  circle  of 
teepees  and  the  hills  around  were  illumined  as  by 
electric  light. 

Again  the  drum-beat,  the  chant  and  dance,  were 
heard  around  the  circuit  of  the  camps  and  all  was 
gay  festivity.  Hardly  any  in  the  concourse  but  were 
either  taking  part  in  the  dances  and  the  games  or  en- 
joying themselves  as  onlookers.  Of  the  few  who  sat 
in  their  teepees  unheeding,  Tokala  was  one.  She 
had  much  to  digest  in  sober  reflection.  But  a  little 
time  since,  Dancing  Bear  of  the  Cheyennes  had  sent 
to  her  father  a  messenger  with  a  gift,  saying  that  he 
would  leave  other  presents  later  and  would  urge  upon 
the  Oglala  chief  that  he  should  give  him  his  daughter 
to  wife.  Following  this  message  Yellow-Iron  had 
spoken  to  Tokala,  and  his  words  had  left  a  sore  spot 
in  her  heart. 

"  My  daughter,"  the  chief  had  said,  "  I  have  this 
day   received   a   present  from  a  great  man  of  the 

156 


LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES       157 

Cheyennes.  You  have  seen  him — Dancing  Bear,  the 
greatest  of  Cheyenne  warriors.  The  man  is  a  good 
man  and  wealthy,  and  I  desire  that  you  shall  marry 
him.  He  will  send  suitable  gifts  at  the  close  of  the 
sun  dance  and  will  ask  you  to  return  with  him  to  his 
country.  I  think  that  you  should  consent  to  marry 
this  man.  You  have  now  seen  nineteen  winters,  and 
it  is  time  that  you  were  mistress  of  a  teepee." 

And  with  this  the  chief  had  turned  upon  his  heel 
and  left  her.  Tokala  had  had  no  opportunity  to  re- 
ply and  her  grief  was  great  in  consequence.  She 
did  not  wish  to  go  away  from  her  people.  Nor  did 
she  desire  a  teepee  of  her  own. 

And  so  she  sat  alone  in  the  open  tiyopa.  Her 
gaze  was  pensively  fixed  upon  the  illumined  crests 
of  Bear  Butte.  For  a  long  time  she  sat  and  then,  by 
some  subtle  sympathy,  her  eyes  were  withdrawn  from 
the  butte  and  saw  only  the  teepee  of  Keyahanhi,  the 
mystery  worker.  Paled  by  the  brilliant  moon's  light 
there  was  the  faint  reflection  of  a  flame  against  the 
decorated  teepee  folds.  Keyahanhi  was  within.  He 
was  often  in  the  habit,  even  in  the  midst  of  festivities, 
of  retiring  within  his  lodge  for  inner  meditation  and 
for  communication  with  spirits  of  the  upper  and  un- 
der worlds. 

For  some  time  Tokala  meditated,  feeling  a  mod- 
esty about   intruding  upon  the  sacred  functions  of 


158        LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES 

one  so  set  apart  as  the  young  mystery  priest.  But  at 
length  her  need  of  counsel  and  sympathy  overcame 
her  reluctance  to  disturb  the  brother.  She  arose 
and  went  softly  to  the  lodge  of  Keyahanhi. 

The  tiyopa  flaps  were  closed  and  tied.  Tokala 
bent  toward  them  feeling  something  of  the  guilt  of 
those  who  pry  into  the  secrets  of  the  confessional. 
A  low  humming  sound,  as  of  the  drone  of  a  bumble- 
bee, came  to  her  ear.  It  affected  her  curiously. 
u  It  is  some  voice  from  the  upper  world,"  was  her  in- 
nermost thought.  The  sound  was  followed  by  a  mur- 
mur confused  and  complex  as  of  a  number  of  musical 
voices  blended  in  one.  Tokala  was  almost  aghast  at 
her  own  temerity  in  having  presumed  that  she  might 
interrupt  a  conference  so  sacred.  She  was  about  to 
turn  softly  and  steal  away  when  the  well  known  voice 
of  Keyahanhi  startled  her. 

"  Sister,"  it  said,  "  you  are  at  the  tiyopa  and  I  will 
open  very  quickly.  Do  not  go  away — I,  your  brother, 
wish  to  talk  with  you." 

Tokala's  approach  had  been  noiseless  and  her  as- 
tonishment at  the  divination  of  her  brother  was  fol- 
lowed by  joyous  emotion. 

"  Since  the  good  spirits  have  told  him  that  I  am 
before  his  door,"  she  thought,  "  Keyahanhi  will  know 
the  words  of  wisdom  I  should  hear.  Very  soon  then 
I  shall  know  what  to  do." 


LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES        159 

It  was  but  a  moment  until  the  folds  of  the  tiyopa 
were  lifted  aside  and  fastened  and  Tokala,  with 
reverent  tread,  entered  and  took  seat  upon  a  rug  of 
badger's  skins. 

She  had  always  a  feeling  of  awe  in  entering  Keya- 
hanhi's  lodge.  This  was  not,  however,  because  the 
brother  made  a  serious  affair  of  receiving  visitors ; 
for  Keyahanhi  was  singularly  open  and  frank — quite 
free,  in  fact,  from  the  solemn  trickery  of  the  average 
Wakan  man  or  mystery  worker. 

Keyahanhi  attempted  none  of  the  juggleries  by 
which  so  many  so  called  "  medicine  men  "  among  the 
Indians  are  able  to  catch  the  credulous.  He  was  a 
dreamer  and  imaginative  and  his  faith  in  communi- 
cation with  the  powers  beyond  his  ken  was  absolute. 

To  this  child  of  nature  every  beast,  bird,  insect, 
tree  and  plant  belonged  to  the  world  of  "  people  "  and 
each  had  a  message  for  his  ear,  capable  of  interpre- 
tation. He  had  only  to  hold  the  ear  close  to  mother 
earth,  keep  the  heart  good  and  the  mind  open,  to 
understand  the  language  of  the  mysterious  ones.  He 
believed  these  also  at  times  capable  of  understanding 
certain  communications  of  his  own.  Besides  the  em- 
bodied creatures  of  mystery  there  were  people  of  the 
upper  world  who  spoke  to  him  in  dreams  and 
visions. 

His  close  sympathy  with  and  keen  observation  of 


160        LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES 

all  the  phenomena  of  the  outdoor  world  enabled 
Keyahanhi  to  make  such  forecasts  of  events,  or  in- 
terpretation of  them,  as  gave  him  wide  influence 
among  his  people. 

It  was  because  of  the  wonders  inside  his  teepee,  the 
mystic  messages  which  were  there  received,  that 
Tokala  entered  in  a  spirit  of  reverence. 

Inside  Keyahanhi's  lodge  the  utensils  and  decora- 
tions were  all  of  a  mystic  nature  pertaining  to  the 
craft  of  him  who  laboured  therein.  The  teepee 
covering  was  of  the  best  smoke-tanned  elkskin  and 
was  checkered  with  coloured  drawings  which  repre- 
sented the  marvels  of  a  world  of  mystery. 

Around  his  walls  were  arranged  none  of  the  manu- 
factured fetiches  of  the  average  conjuror,  but  the 
horns  of  wild  animals,  stuffed  skins  of  curious  snakes, 
the  mounted  wings  of  brilliantly  coloured  birds,  but- 
terflies, various  shells,  fossils,  and  curiously  shaped 
and  coloured  stones  which  he  had  gathered  here  and 
there  and  preserved  as  marvellous  works  of  the  Great 
Mystery.  These  were  the  things  of  animate  and  in- 
animate nature  for  which  Keyahanhi  had  reverence. 
Thus  the  new  mystery  worker  of  the  Oglalas  was 
living  close  to  nature,  shrewdly  observant  of  all  her 
works,  and  with  a  spirit  attuned  for  almost  marvellous 
interpretation  of  those  voices  of  the  wilderness  which 
appeal  to  the  man  or  woman  of  imaginative  nature. 


LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES       161 

To  Tokala  his  lodge  represented  a  sacred  shrine 
before  which  her  young  heart  worshipped  as  devoutly 
as  any  devotee  at  the  altar  of  a  church.  After  she 
had  taken  a  seat  Keyahanhi  smoked  in  silence  for  a 
time.  Then  he  laid  aside  his  pipe  and  looked  at  her 
with  the  eye  of  brotherly  affection. 

"  What  is  it,  sister  ?  "  he  asked.  "  I  see  that  you  are 
indeed  troubled." 

Tokala  had  few  reserves  in  her  talks  with  Keya- 
hanhi and  The  Sky  and  she  answered  with  apparent 
frankness. 

"  I  am  asked  to  go  from  my  father's  teepee  and  I 
do  not  wish  to  do  so.  I  love  my  father  and  mother 
and  Ota  and  I  do  not  want  to  leave  them.  This 
evening  my  father  has  spoken  to  me  about  marriage 
and  my  heart  is  sad." 

For  some  minutes  Keyahanhi  sat  apparently  study- 
ing the  figures  on  an  upturned  robe  beside  him.  A 
little  humorous  twinkle  played  about  the  corners  of 
his  eyes.     He  was  yet  Keyahanhi  the  joker. 

"  Perhaps,"  he  suggested,  "  your  father  has  not 
spoken  about  the  right  man  ?  " 

A  wave  of  colour,  half  of  embarrassment,  half  of 
anger,  swept  Tokala's  face.  She  had  wished  to  be 
taken  seriously. 

"I  have  said,"  she  declared  with  some  asperity, 
"  that  I  do  not  wish  to  marry.     Is  not  that  enough  ?  " 


162       LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES 

"  Forgive  me,  sister,"  said  Keyahanhi  soberly,  "  I 
did  but  jest  seeing  you  look  so  solemn.  A  maiden 
does  not  usually  put  on  mourning  when  she  is  in- 
vited to  enter  the  lodge  of  so  strong  and  bold  a 
warrior  as  Dancing  Bear,  of  so  great  a  leader  as 
Cloud  Chief,  or  of  so  lucky  a  man  as  Catches  Eagles." 

"  I  do  not  wish  to  marry,"  again  declared  Tokala, 
stoutly. 

"  Yet  Dancing  Bear  is  a  very  fine  man,"  said 
Keyahanhi  reflectively,  "  and  the  Cheyennes  are  in- 
clined of  late  to  form  an  alliance  with  us  against  the 
Long  Knives.  It  would  be  good  for  our  people  that 
you  should  marry  him,"  he  added  with  shrewd  at- 
tention in  the  look  he  bent  upon  her. 

Tokala  went  pale  and  a  far-away  look  came  into 
her  eyes.  It  was  evident  that  she  had  not  come  for 
this  sort  of  advice ;  that  she  had  hoped  for  the  ready 
sympathy  which  she  had  found  in  the  past — not 
argument  in  support  of  Yellow-Iron's  wishes. 

Keyahanhi  studying  her  face,  despite  her  recent 
stout  asseveration,  saw  where  her  heart  was  truly 
engaged  and  took  counsel  with  himself.  After  two 
or  three  minutes  of  silence  he  spoke  again. 

"  Sister,  you  have  seen  nineteen  winters," — her 
father  had  said  this  and  Tokala  scowled  fiercely — 
"  and  it  is  unknown  among  us  that  a  good  woman 
shall  live  solely  for  herself.     You  as  the  daughter  of 


LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES        163 

Yellow-Iron  must  become  the  wife  of  some  man  and 
rear  a  family  as  all  others  of  our  women  do.  You 
have  now  your  choice  of  three  brave  warriors " 

"  But  I  am  not  allowed  to  choose ! "  interrupted 
Tokala  warmly,  "  my  father  and  others  it  seems  wish 
to  choose  for  me  and  that  I  will  not  consent  to." 

Keyahanhi  considered  before  answering.  Then  he 
said: 

"  Sister,  if  you  will  not  listen  to  the  advice  of  your 
father  or  your  friends  why  should  you  come  to  me  ?  " 

This  grave  question  heightened  the  colour  in 
Tokala's  cheeks  and  increased  her  embarrassment. 
Keyahanhi  was  indeed  making  things  very  hard  for 
her,  which  was  unlike  him.  Her  flush  of  resentment 
was  succeeded  by  inimical  silence  and  for  a  time  the 
two  found  themselves  seized  upon  by  very  unusual 
moods. 

At  length  Tokala  declared  herself  vehemently. 

"  I  will  not  marry  Dancing  Bear — I  will  not  marry 
Catches  Eagles — I "  she  fatally  hesitated. 

"  Will  not  marry  Koska  of  the  Crows,"  supplied 
Keyahanhi  and  then  he  laughed  and  Tokala  laughed 
and  the  ice  was  broken. 

"  Let  us  not  talk  as  people  with  their  hands  over 
their  mouths,"  said  Keyahanhi,  "  but  as  those  whose 
hearts  are  open  and  who  speak  the  truth.  You  love 
Cloud  Chief  of  the  Crows  and  you  would  very  quickly 


164        LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES 

take  your  place  in  his  lodge  if  he  were  a  faithful 
Dakota.     This  is  the  truth,"  he  added  flatly. 

And  Tokala  grown  suddenly  sober  at  his  serious 
tone  and  manner  answered  him  with  truth. 

"  Yes,  it  is  so ;  but  you,  my  brother,  hate  him  and 
so  do  all  Oglalas  and  for  no  reason  at  all ! "  she  as- 
serted passionately. 

"  It  does  not  appear  that  you  speak  justly,"  an- 
swered the  brother  mildly.  "  Did  you  not,  when  we 
were  overtaken  in  the  southern  lands,  after  the  battle 
with  the  Long  Knives,  tell  Cloud  Chief  of  the  Crows 
that  you  were  a  Dakota  and  would  have  none  of 
him  ?  You  could  have  gone  with  him  then  or  he 
would  have  come  for  you  whenever  you  said  the 
word.  You  are  old  enough  to  choose  for  yourself 
now  and  he  again  asks  you  to  marry  him.  Then  be 
his  wife  and  Keyahanhi  will  be  a  brother  to  you 
both." 

And  Tokala,  after  the  manner  of  maidens,  buried 
her  face  in  her  hands  and  cried. 

Keyahanhi  sought  the  refuge  of  his  pipe  while  the 
sister's  tears  flowed.  His  heart  was  touched  for, 
since  she  was  a  child,  she  had  not  wept  in  his  pres- 
ence. While  she  was  still  shaken  with  emotion  a 
shadow  fell  across  the  tiyopa  and  The  Sky  entered 
taking  a  seat  beside  Tokala. 

"  Let   not   my  daughter   grieve,"  she   murmured, 


LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES       165 

"  nor  in  Keyahanhi's  lodge  withhold  anything  that  is 
in  her  heart.  Lo,  my  husband  has  sent  a  messenger 
to  your  uncles  and  aunts  who  will  come  in  to-morrow 
to  talk  of  this  man  of  the  Cheyennes  who  wishes  to 
marry  you.  I  also  have  spoken  to  your  uncles 
Pawnee  Man  and  Whirlwind  Soldier  and  with  aunts 
Cloud  Bird  and  Falling  Leaf.  All  these  know  that 
you  may  choose  among  three  warriors  and  they  have 
thought,  as  I  think,  that  you  should  marry  where 
you  may  bring  into  alliance  those  who  have  hitherto 
been  the  most  powerful  of  our  enemies." 

"  Han !  han  !  "  exclaimed  Keyahanhi,  in  hearty  as- 
sent, "  my  mother  is  very  wise.  See,  it  has  now 
been  four  winters  since  Koska  of  the  Brules  became 
chief  of  the  Crows  and  lo,  there  has  been  no  fighting 
between  us.  We  have  not  lost  so  much  as  a  pony  at 
the  hands  of  these  our  old  enemies.  Truly  this  Cloud 
Chief  has  remembered  his  own  people  to  protect 
them." 

It  was  then  that  Tokala,  in  the  presence  of  these 
dear  and  sympathetic  friends,  raised  a  face  shining 
with  happiness.  Now  that  it  was  certain  powerful 
advocates  were  to  plead  for  her  she  had  hope  that  her 
father  was  to  be  alone  in  his  wish  to  marry  her  to  the 
Cheyenne.  Yellow-Iron  was  a  stern  father  when  need 
arose  but,  where  family  matters  were  concerned,  he 
had  as  truly  proven  a  reasonable  man,  ready  to  listen 


166        LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES 

to  the  counsel  of  his  kinfolk  and  to  bend  his  wishes 
to  those  of  the  large  majority. 

Since  her  parting  with  Cloud  Chief,  when  he  had 
snatched  her  out  of  the  hands  of  white  captors,  To- 
kala  had  had  no  word  from  her  lover.  She  had  not 
mentioned  his  name  in  any  one's  hearing  in  the  four 
years  which  followed.  Though  she  had  been  un- 
willing to  listen  to  other  suitors,  her  people,  because 
of  her  cheerful  nature,  did  not  credit  her  with  bear- 
ing grief. 

When  the  Crows  had  come  and  the  Brule  again 
was  a  visitor  at  the  Oglala  village,  now  as  a  proud 
and  handsome  chief  whose  renown  had  spread  to  all 
the  tribes  from  the  Great  River  of  the  North  to  the 
Rio  Grande,  Tokala  had  still  given  no  sign.  When 
the  young  men  and  women  of  the  tribes  had  "  ridden 
the  circle,"  as  is  the  custom  before  the  ceremonies  of 
the  sun  dance,  going  two  by  two  man  and  maiden 
side  by  side,  and  Tokala,  as  princess  among  the 
Oglalas  had  been  paired  with  Cloud  Chief,  she  had 
shown  a  cold  and  indifferent  face  as  though  riding  be- 
side a  stranger. 

The  Crow  chief  had  before  this  sent  word  to  her 
relatives  that,  at  the  close  of  the  sun  dance,  he  should 
seek  her  in  marriage.  In  this  he  had  shown  all  the 
haste  at  a  lover's  command ;  for  the  laws  of  the  sun- 


LOVE'S  PERPLEXITIES       167 

dance  were  such  that  no  alliance  of  any  sort  could  be 
formed  until  the  close  of  the  ceremonies. 

Secretly  Tokala's  heart  had  responded  but  she  had 
yet  to  learn  the  attitude  of  her  elders  toward  the 
great  Sioux  warrior  who  had  joined  their  enemies. 
Her  father's  urging  of  the  suit  of  Dancing  Bear  had 
been  her  first  intimation,  and  she  had  feared  to  find 
all  her  clan  in  accord. 

She  was  ready  for  the  supreme  surrender  and  to 
hide  her  great  joy  she  went  forth  from  her  friends 
and,  within  the  safe  grounds  of  the  circle,  walked  far 
out  upon  the  prairie. 


XIII 
THE   FAMOUS  WARRIOR 

THE  place  of  the  Crows  in  the  encampment 
of  the  sun  dance  was  at  the  south  extremity 
or  centre  of  the  tribal  circle.  They  num- 
bered something  like  two  hundred  teepees.  Cloud 
Chief  had  brought  several  hundreds  of  his  followers 
to  this  ancient  dance  of  his  people.  Four  winters 
had  gone  since  he  had  mingled  with  his  own  folk. 
In  the  meantime  much  had  happened  to  him.  From 
point  to  point  he  had  won  his  way  as  a  successful 
leader  of  the  Absaroke. 

He  had  suffered  failures,  but  his  successes  had  been 
the  more  numerous.  Besides  the  deeds  which  have 
been  recorded  he  had,  in  the  four  years  that  had  fol- 
lowed, led  a  number  of  war-parties.  In  an  expedi- 
tion against  the  Shoshones  his  party  had  achieved  a 
notable  success.  They  had  slain  forty  or  fifty  of  the 
enemy  with  the  loss  of  but  seven  men  and  had  taken 
a  large  herd  of  horses.  Again  he  had  gone  against 
the  Mandans  at  the  Great  Bend  of  the  Missouri. 
His  band  of  three  hundred  had  attacked  a  village  of 
earth  lodges,  manning  a  thousand  warriors,  and  had 
held  them  in  a  state  of  siege  for  eleven  suns.     This 

168 


THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR       169 

was   considered  a  remarkable  exploit,  although  the 
Mandans  had  successfully  withstood  the  Crows. 

In  a  raid  against  the  southern  Cheyennes,  with  fifty 
picked  men,  the  Brule  had  routed  a  large  village  and 
brought  home  many  ponies  ;  and  in  a  venture  against 
the  Blackfeet,  in  the  mountains  near  the  Mussell  Shell 
River,  his  party  gained  honour  from  overwhelming 
odds.  In  a  thicket  of  quaking  asp  the  Crows  were 
surrounded  by  a  thousand  Blackfoot  warriors.  Cloud 
Chiefs  band  fought  until  they  had  neither  arrows  nor 
cartridges  left  and  scarce  a  hundred  men  survived. 
At  the  command  of  their  leader  and  in  the  middle  of 
the  night  this  remnant  sallied  forth,  knife  and  toma- 
hawk in  hand,  each  man  instructed  to  fight  for  him- 
self. Threescore  of  them  cut  their  way  through  the 
Blackfoot  lines  and  escaped. 

And  for  this  heroic  resistance  and  flight  the  young 
leader  of  the  Crows  had  been  lauded  more  than  for 
all  his  victories. 

An  expedition  undertaken  the  summer  before  the 
sun  dance  had  been  a  long  and  disastrous  one.  Its 
motive  had  been  found  in  an  occurrence  of  twenty 
years  before.  When  Wandering  Elk  was  chief  of 
the  Crows  messengers  had  come  from  the  far-off 
Navajos  asking  for  a  conference  with  the  Absaroke. 
This  distant  people  the  Crows — like  all  other  north- 
west tribes — knew  by  their  handiwork,  their  silver 


170       THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR 

beads,  their  horse-hair  quirts,  their  stout  blankets  and 
other  ornamental  and  useful  articles.  And  knowing 
them  by  their  cunning  artificers  the  Absaroke  es- 
teemed them  highly. 

The  couriers  of  the  Navajos  were  commissioned  to 
ask  the  Crows  to  join  them  in  "  raising  a  council 
lodge  "  among  the  Colorado  mountains.  After  en- 
tertaining them  hospitably  the  Crow  chiefs  instructed 
these  to  return  to  their  village  with  the  message  that 
a  Crow  delegation  would  meet  the  Navajos  at  the  foot 
of  Sierra  Blanca  in  the  space  of  one  more  moon. 

In  due  season  the  Crows  set  out  and  travelled  to 
the  southward.  They  passed  over  a  wide  barren 
country  and  were  compelled  to  wander  in  search  of 
water  and  game. 

They  reached  a  river  within  sight  of  the  mountain 
which  was  their  goal  of  meeting  and  camped  for  the 
night.  As  they  numbered  three  hundred  well-armed 
warriors  the  Crows  feared  no  enemies  which  should 
come  to  them  after  the  manner  of  natural  men. 
But  in  the  night  a  strange  light  arose  in  the  east 
dancing  over  the  prairie,  and  their  outlying  guards, 
noting  the  phenomenon,  aroused  the  leaders  of  the 
camp.  These  gazed  with  awe  upon  a  star-flame 
which  passed  in  curiously  measured  movements 
across  a  river  bottom. 

"  It  is  a  sign,"  they  said,  "  and  we  must  see  to  it 


THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR       171 

that  we  interpret  it  aright ;  for  the  next  thing  that 
happens  must  surely  guide  our  course." 

The  next  thing  of  importance  that  happened  was 
the  appearance,  on  the  following  morning,  of  a 
number  of  Comanche  pony  riders.  These  came 
boldly  into  the  Crow  camp  and  their  leader  dis- 
mounted and  asked  for  the  head  chief  of  the  village. 
In  reply  one  lead  him  to  the  teepee  of  Wandering 
Elk.  The  Comanche  came  before  this  chief  and  be- 
gan to  talk  in  the  sign  language. 

11  You  are  come  to  meet  the  Navajos  on  the  other 
side  of  Sierra  Blanca,"  he  communicated,  "  and  I 
wish  to  tell  you  that  those  people  have  planned  for 
your  death  and  that  of  all  your  party.  You  will 
need  to  know  if  I  lie  or  if  I  speak  the  truth.  Do 
you  seek  of  me  a  sign  ?  " 

The  Crow  chief,  wondering  much  at  what  the 
Comanche  had  said,  intimated  that  a  sign  of  mystery 
or  wonder  would  be  necessary  to  convince  him  of  its 
truth. 

"  Good,"  said  the  Comanche,  "  at  home  you  have 
a  white  pony  with  black  feet  and  a  black  spot  upon 
its  right  hip.  There  is  also  a  little  red  upon  one  ear. 
You  have  a  daughter  whom  you  have  promised  to  a 
chief  of  the  Nez  Perces  and  who  has  refused  your 
command  to  marry  him.  Upon  the  left  breast, 
beneath  your  war-shirt,  you  have  the  tattoo  of  an 


172       THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOE 

arrow  and  an  elk's  head.  In  the  middle  of  last 
night  you  saw  a  strange  light  dancing  above  the 
high  grass  of  the  river  bottom.  Is  it  enough? 
Have  I  convinced  you  ?  " 

Wandering  Elk  stood  for  a  moment  considering 
this  matter  gravely  ;  then  he  looked  shrewdly  at  the 
Comanche.  The  man  met  him  eye  to  eye  in  a  clear 
gaze  and  the  Crow  believed  he  had  spoken  truth. 

"  Truly,"  said  Wandering  Elk,  "  this  is  something 
wonderful.  It  has  not  happened  thus  to  us  for  many 
winters.     We  will  return  to  our  own  country." 

Forthwith  the  Crows  broke  camp  and  took  up  the 
journey  homeward.  Only  after  twenty  years,  and 
from  the  idle  boasting  of  a  Comanche  captive  of  the 
Navajos,  was  it  known  that  Wandering  Elk  and  his 
party  had  been  shrewdly  deceived.  When  this  was 
known  the  Navajos  again  sent  a  messenger  to  the 
Crows.  Their  runner  was  carefully  instructed.  He 
rehearsed  the  story  as  told  by  the  Comanche  captive 
and  of  the  message  of  Iron  Man  to  the  Crows  as  re- 
called by  the  older  Navajos. 

Old  men  among  the  Crows  well  remembered  the 
expedition  led  by  Wandering  Elk;  these  also  re- 
membered his  return  and  the  cause  therefor. 

"  After  all  these  winters,"  said  the  Navajos,  "  we 
are  come  to  do  justice.  We  desire  now  that  you 
shall   meet   us  at  the  White  Mountain  as  was  ar- 


THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR       173 

ranged.  We  choose  that  our  ancient  faith  with  your 
people  shall  be  kept,  that  we  may  not  lie  under  re- 
proach." 

In  a  deliberative  council  the  head  men  and  chief 
warriors  of  the  Crows  considered  this  question. 
There  was  reason  to  believe  that  the  Navajo  runner 
had  spoken  truth ;  that  the  Comanches  of  so  many 
winters  since  had  been  possessed  of  secret  informa- 
tion and  had  acted  the  part  of  treachery ;  that  they 
had  done  this  to  prevent  an  alliance  between  the 
Crows  and  their  enemies,  the  Navajos. 

The  chief  speakers  at  this  council — as  they  were 
leaders  in  influence  among  the  Crows — were  Cloud 
Chief  and  High  Bear,  the  last  a  medicine  man  and 
juggler  of  uncommon  quality.  High  Bear  was  the 
one  powerful  enemy  of  the  Brule  among  his  adopted 
people.  On  every  public  question  they  were  pitted 
against  each  other.  Sometimes  the  council  of  one 
prevailed,  sometimes  that  of  the  other.  On  this  oc- 
casion High  Bear  strenuously  opposed  the  sending 
of  a  delegation  so  far  into  the  enemies'  country  and 
he  predicted  various  misfortunes  in  the  event  that  his 
council  should  be  overruled. 

Cloud  Chief,  in  an  impassioned  address,  insisted 
that  tribal  honour  was  at  stake  in  the  matter.  If 
now  the  Crows,  he  said,  should  refuse  to  meet  the 
Navajos  at  the  appointed  rendezvous  they  would  in- 


174       THE   FAMOUS  WARRIOR 

cur  the  stigma  of  being  branded  as  old  women  and 
cowards.  His  speech  fired  the  young  warriors  of 
the  tribe ;  and  in  the  end  a  large  party  set  out  for 
the  south  country. 

These  travelled  for  the  space  of  twenty  suns  stop- 
ping now  and  then  to  hunt  the  buffalo  and  elk.  One 
night  as  they  were  camped  at  the  mouth  of  a  sandy 
run,  tributary  to  the  Arkansas,  there  burst  out  of  a 
near  coulee  a  great  company  of  Long  Knives.  Of 
sixty  Crows  but  fifteen  escaped  and  these  had  to 
make  their  way  homeward  on  foot.  Cunning  and 
swift  had  been  the  attack  of  the  white  soldiers  and 
not  a  mount  was  left  the  Indians. 

Cloud  Chief  led  his  forlorn  remnant  by  way  of  the 
mountains.  Perils  beset  them  from  end  to  end  of 
the  long  journey. 

Near  the  Three  Peaks  of  the  Cache  le  Poudre  they 
were  attacked  by  a  war-party  of  Utes  and  but  nine 
of  the  fifteen  came  off  alive.  Of  these  one  was 
drowned  in  crossing  a  swollen  river  and  one  fell  ill  of 
eating  putrid  meat  and  died.  At  this  time  the  party 
had  neither  ammunition  nor  arrows.  They  ate  such 
roots  and  forage  as  they  could  find. 

Seven  soldiers,  among  them  the  leader,  reached 
the  Crow  villages.  Only  the  fact  that  his  life  seemed 
time  and  again  to  have  been  miraculously  preserved 
could  have  saved  the  influence  of  Cloud  Chief.     High 


THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR       175 

Bear  made  most  of  the  occasion.  He  boasted  of 
his  wisdom  and  cried  to  the  teepee-tops  of  the  ful- 
fillment of  his  prophecy. 

His  long  series  of  successes  and  his  mysterious 
escape  from  death  on  several  occasions,  as  related  by 
his  surviving  comrades,  saved  Cloud  Chief's  fame 
and  kept  him  at  the  head  of  the  Crow  warriors. 
Thus  we  find  him  at  the  sun  dance  with  history  be- 
hind him — the  peer  of  any  among  wild  riders  of  the 
plains. 

Yet  the  history  which  had  given  him  standing 
among  the  Absaroke  is  not  sufficiently  indicated  in 
enumerating  his  deeds  as  a  fighter. 

These  alone  could  not  have  maintained  his  posi- 
tion. It  was  the  fine  character  of  the  man  that, 
after  all,  appealed  to  the  wise  and  influential  among 
the  Absaroke.  In  his  first  encounter  with  the 
Crows,  in  telling  them  of  his  deeds,  he  had  related 
simple  truth  exaggerating  nothing.  Nor  was  there, 
at  any  time,  in  his  most  impassioned  utterance,  the 
accent  of  the  boaster. 

The  name  of  Cloud  Chief  had  been  given  him  be- 
cause of  that  first  stroke  of  his  genius  as  a  warrior, 
wrought  in  the  clouds  above  the  Shoshone  village. 
In  his  craft  and  daring  on  that  occasion  his  one  time 
enemies  had  seen  the  hand  of  destiny  which  marks 
the  young  warrior  as  a  born  leader  of  men. 


176       THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR 

But  he  had  gained  another  name  among  the 
Crows,  the  name  of  Straight  Tongue,  because  of  his 
inherent  truthfulness.  The  Absaroke  were  not  long 
in  learning  that  his  least  statement  of  fact  could  be 
relied  upon.  He  was  also  known  among  them  as  a 
man  of  great  generosity,  who  frequently  gave  away 
all  the  plunder  of  war  or  of  the  chase. 

And,  such  are  the  ways  of  the  children  of  the 
wild,  that  voice  which  had  driven  him  forth  from  the 
Oglalas  was  esteemed  in  the  tribe  of  his  adoption 
not  only  as  a  great  mystery  but  as  a  beneficent  gift. 
Doubtless  his  judicious  use  of  it  had  much  to  do 
with  its  having,  among  the  Absaroke,  added  quality 
to  his  fame.  He  had  not  raised  his  marvelous 
whoop  above  that  of  others  in  the  dances ;  but 
he  had  given  occasional  exhibition  of  his  powers  in 
calling  to  his  fellows  during  the  chase  or  in  their 
battles. 

He  had  lived  among  the  Absaroke  two  winters 
keeping  his  own  lodge  and  with  no  eye  for  the  hand- 
somest of  Crow  maidens,  though  many  an  ardent 
glance  was  cast  upon  him  as  he  passed  the  teepee 
doors.  Then,  at  the  urgent  solicitation  of  his  war- 
rior advisers,  he  sought  a  wife  in  Mountain  Lamb,  a 
tall  and  handsome  daughter  of  the  Crow  brave 
Touch-the-Sky. 

His  courtship  of  The  Lamb  soon  came  to  have  a 


THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR       177 

piquancy,  because  of  the  rivalry  involved.  It  was 
no  sooner  intimated  to  Touch-the-Sky  that  Cloud 
Chief  was  looking  toward  his  daughter  than  the 
great  medicine  man,  High  Bear,  began  to  court  her. 
It  was  not  the  part  of  her  kinfolk  to  choose  between 
suitors  of  such  quality,  and  the  flattered  maiden  had 
no  sooner  made  sure  that  both  these  men  were  seek- 
ing her  than  she  played  the  coquette  to  perfection. 
The  fascinating  graces  of  the  flirt  are  not  all  summed 
up  in  the  arts  of  Fifth  Avenue.  The  Mountain 
Lamb  led  her  wooers  a  pretty  dance  and  succeeded 
finally  in  drawing  warmth  into  the  suit  of  the  cold- 
hearted  foreign  chief. 

In  the  end  the  splendour  of  the  younger  man's 
deeds  prevailed  and,  after  nearly  a  year  of  divided 
courtship,  the  Mountain  Lamb  entered  Cloud  Chiefs 
teepee. 

When  he  arrived  at  the  sun  dance  the  chief  had 
expected  to  find  Tokala  Noni  married.  He  had 
thought  of  her  often ;  she  had  never  lost  her  hold 
upon  his  heart ;  but  it  was  not  to  be  expected  that  a 
maiden  so  attractive  should  remain  unmarried. 
When  he  learned  that  Tokala  was  yet  living  in  her 
father's  teepee  his  heart  beat  high  with  hope  revived. 
Learning  that  she  was  free  of  any  pledge  of  mar- 
riage he  lost  no  time  in  sending  an  intimation  and  a 
present  to  her  relatives. 


178       THE  FAMOUS  WARRIOR 

From  the  Indian  point  of  view  he  was  free  to  seek 
her  in  marriage.  It  is  doubtful  whether  a  thought  of 
his  Crow  wife  entered  his  mind  as  an  objection. 
Tokala  would  be  the  wife  of  his  heart.  That  the 
daughter  of  Yellow-Iron  could  long  be  ignorant  of 
his  history  was  not,  of  course,  possible.  His  wife, 
because  of  a  babe,  had  remained  at  the  Crow  village ; 
yet  there  were  present  too  many  hundreds  of  his 
adopted  tribesmen  for  any  hope — if  indeed  the  chief 
indulged  in  one — that  his  marriage  among  them 
could  be  concealed. 

He  sought  Tokala  openly  and  without  mention, 
on  his  own  part  of  any  ties  at  home. 


^r 


XIV 
A   FAMILY    COUNCIL 

HE  clan  conference  at  Yellow-Iron's  lodge 
was  after  all  a  prolonged  and  grave  affair. 

"^  The  proposals  of  Catches  Eagles,  Dancing 
Bear  and  Cloud  Chief  were  known  to  the  members 
of  the  war-chief's  family. 

These  supposed  that  they  should  meet,  according 
to  ancient  custom,  to  discuss  the  claims  and  merits 
of  each  of  Tokala's  suitors. 

The  surprise  of  the  relatives  was  great  and  some 
of  them  were  heartily  dismayed  when  Yellow-Iron, 
after  benignly  waiting  for  them  to  obtain  seats  and 
after  offering  the  pipe  first  to  his  elders,  stated  the 
occasion  of  calling  them  together  and  made  no  men- 
tion of  the  Crow  chief  or  the  Sans  Arc  Master  of 
Ceremonies. 

"A  man  wishes  to  marry  my  daughter;"  Yellow- 
Iron  said,  "  he  is  a  warrior  and  a  hunter  whose  teepee 
has  never  known  want.  He  is  also  a  man  of  distinc- 
tion who  has  gone  against  the  enemy  and  has 
counted  many  coups.     He  has  a  fine  character  and 

a  good  and  generous  heart  and  he  has  much  property. 

179 


180  A  FAMILY  COUNCIL 

He  will  make  a  good  husband  who  will  provide  for 
his  wife  and  children.  I  speak  of  Dancing  Bear,  of 
the  Cheyennes,  and  I  am  ready  to  listen  to  words  of 
wisdom." 

The  eyes  of  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi  fell  and  their 
faces  discovered  emotion  at  the  close  of  these  re- 
marks. Yellow-Iron,  shrewd  in  council  as  he  was 
brave  in  war,  had  departed  from,  without  violating, 
the  laws  of  tribal  custom.  There  was  no  precedent 
in  the  experience  of  any  one  present  which  could  ap- 
ply to  the  exigency  of  the  moment.  When  a  young 
woman  had  more  than  one  offer  of  marriage  it  had 
been  the  custom  of  her  elder  kinfolk  to  discuss  the 
merits  01  eacn  suitor  in  turn. 

In  consequence  those  present,  who  wished  to  serve 
Tokala,  had  tc  search  their  minds  for  some  phase  of 
argument  which  should  permit  bringing  in  the  name 
of  Cloud  Chief.  Each  one  keenly  realized  that  Yel- 
low-Iron was  the  host  of  the  occasion ;  that  he  had 
called  them  into  his  lodge  for  council  in  a  matter 
which  must  concern  him  more  nearly  than  them- 
selves. 

The  thoughts  of  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi  were 
swiftly  busy  conning  the  situation  from  their  own  and 
Tokala's  point  of  view.  They  felt  that  the  matter  of 
presenting  her  choice  and  gaining  support  for  her 
would  be  difficult.     It  was  evident  that  the  proposal 


A  FAMILY  COUNCIL  181 

of  Dancing  Bear  was  not  to  be  set  aside  save  for 
weighty  reason.  Tokala's  warmest  partisans  knew, 
as  all  her  relatives  knew,  that  she  could  not  be  forced 
to  marry  any  man.  She  was  of  a  high  spirit  and  not 
to  be  moved  by  coercion.  On  the  other  hand  they 
were  equally  aware  that  she  would  be  loathe  to  grieve 
her  father  by  marrying  against  his  wishes.  Added  to 
this  they  saw  that  Yellow-Iron  hoped,  through  their 
combined  influence,  to  prevail  upon  Tokala  to  accept 
his  choice. 

The  situation  was  complicated  and  there  was  lack 
of  speech  and  much  embarrassment  after  the  war- 
chief  had  spoken.  To  Keyahanhi  and  The  Sky  the 
atmosphere  of  the  lodge  became  stifling. 

After  a  time  the  oppressive  silence  was  broken. 
Pawnee  Man,  sub-chief  and  elder  brother  of  Yellow- 
Iron,  was  first  to  speak.  The  old  chief  laid  aside  his 
pipe  and  arose  very  deliberately.  He  stepped  for- 
ward to  the  centre  of  the  circle  and  spoke  with  ap- 
parent reluctance. 

"  We  who  are  old,"  he  said,  "  must  soon  lay  our 
bones  to  rest.  When  we  are  gone  those  who  are  now 
young  must  keep  green  the  name  of  the  Lakota. 
Shall  we  look  to  warriors  of  other  nations  to  do 
this  ?  Has  it  at  any  time  been  necessary  that  we 
should  send  our  women  away  from  home  to  get  them 
husbands  ?     I  look  around  me  upon  the  young  men 


182  A   FAMILY  COUNCIL 

of  the  villages,  who  are  gathered  to  dance  the  sacred 
dance  of  my  people,  and  I  have  yet  seen  no  one  of 
the  strangers  more  worthy  than  our  own  Oglala 
youth.  And  we  are  but  one  of  the  many  tribes  of 
the  Lakota.  Are  there  not  among  us  the  Sans  Arcs, 
the  Minneconjous,  the  Hunkapapas,  the  Mandans, 
and  our  near  neighbours  the  Brules  ?  There  are  also 
present  many  of  the  Absaroke  who  were  for- 
merly of  our  people.  Among  all  these  villages  of 
our  kinsmen  can  there  be  found  no  worthy  young 
man  who  wishes  to  pluck  the  rose  of  the  Oglalas  ?  I 
have  spoken." 

The  old  chief  took  his  seat  with  something  like  a 
grunt  of  sarcasm.  He  was  not  a  talker  and  seldom 
spoke  in  council  except  in  urgent  matters.  During 
this  talk  Yellow-Iron  sat,  with  inscrutable  face,  look- 
ing down  his  nose.  But  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi,  as 
soon  as  they  had  been  able  to  interpret  the  drift  of  the 
old  man's  speech,  were  elated.  Each  had  maintained 
that  gravity  of  demeanour  which  the  occasion  de- 
manded ;  but  at  the  close  their  cheeks  had  stolen  a 
flush  of  pleasure.  Their  eyes  shone  with  soft  light 
as  the  old  man  took  his  seat  upon  the  "  robe  of 
honour  "  which  was  his  in  the  family  circle. 

Whirlwind  Soldier  was  next  to  put  aside  his  pipe 
and  talk.  He  was  a  stout  warrior  in  battle  but  wily 
and  uncertain  in  council.     He  spoke  now  because,  as 


A  FAMILY  COUNCIL  183 

next  eldest  to  Pawnee  Man,  it  was  his  turn  to  deliver 
an  opinion. 

"  I  do  not  know  this  man  of  the  Cheyennes,"  he 
said,  "  but  there  are  many  brave  youths  among  that 
people.  I  think  doubtless  that  Dancing  Bear  would 
make  a  good  husband.  He  would  probably  provide 
for  his  wife  and  children.  Are  not  the  Cheyennes 
good  soldiers  and  hunters  ?  If  therefore  my  niece  be 
willing  to  marry  him  I  think  that  this  man  would 
make  her  a  good  husband.  I  have  listened  to  the 
words  of  Pawnee  Man.  I  think  he  speaks  wisely.  I 
have  said  enough." 

With  a  face  innocent  of  duplicity  Whirlwind 
Soldier,  having  trimmed  his  sails  to  go  with  the 
wind,  took  his  seat.  He  had  added  nothing  definitely 
to  encourage  Tokala's  chief  supporters  but  he  had 
shown  somewhat  where  his  inclination  lay  and  The 
Sky  and  Keyahanhi  were  grateful. 

Young  Wolf,  the  medicine  priest,  arose.  He  was 
known  to  be  a  partisan  of  Catches  Eagles.  The 
master  of  ceremonies  had,  in  fact,  employed  Young 
Wolf  as  the  medium  of  making  his  latest  ambition 
known  to  Yellow-Iron.  Possibly  the  possession  of  a 
number  of  red  eagle  feathers  had  something  to  do 
with  the  counsel  of  Young  Wolf.  This  is  what  he 
said  : 

"  I  am  of  those  who  consult  the  Great  Mystery 


184  A  FAMILY   COUNCIL 

upon  all  questions  of  import.  I  think  that  we  should 
at  all  times  keep  the  ear  open  for  the  voice  of  the 
Most  Mysterious,  and  that  our  feet  should  follow  the 
trail  of  wisdom.  Last  night  indeed  the  Most  Mys- 
terious spoke  to  me  in  a  vision.  I  had  been  think- 
ing deeply  about  this  matter,  which  has  called  us  in 
council,  and  was  much  concerned  to  know  what 
would  be  best  for  my  niece.  While  I  was  thus  pon- 
dering the  mysterious  ones  came  to  me  in  a  dream 
and  lo,  I  saw  a  strange  thing  happen.  A  Buffalo 
from  the  North  and  a  Wolf  from  the  West  met  in  the 
midst  of  the  dance  circle,  and  lo,  a  Red  Eagle,  soar- 
ing in  mid-air,  swooped  to  the  earth  and  bore  them 
away  in  its  talons.  The  Red  Eagle  carried  them 
high  in  the  air  and  dropped  them  upon  the  Hill  of 
Mato-osansan.  I  went  hither  thinking  to  procure 
meat  and  skins  and  behold  a  great  stench  arose. 
The  smoke  of  the  offal  became  a  cloud  above  the 
hill  and  descended  upon  the  plain,  even  upon  the 
dance  circle,  and  the  people  were  compelled  to  strike 
their  lodges  and  depart  in  great  haste  lest  a  pestilence 
fall  upon  them." 

There  was  no  response  when  the  speaker  took  his 
seat.  The  dreams  of  a  medicine  priest  could  affect 
but  little  among  the  solid  folk  of  Yellow-Iron's  clan. 
They  were  not  in  the  habit  of  consulting  conjurors. 
Young  Wolf  had  found  his  clients  among  people  of 


A  FAMILY  COUNCIL  185 

less  character.  He  was  good-natured,  however,  and 
seldom  acted  in  opposition  to  the  purpose  of  his 
clan.  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi  would  have  felt 
grateful  for  his  support  where,  it  now  seemed,  they 
must  stand  alone.  For  his  dream  with  its  pointed 
implication  they  cared  not  a  fish's  scale. 

The  brothers  of  Yellow-Iron  had  all  spoken  and 
all  had  kept  to  the  etiquette  which  the  occasion  de- 
manded. No  one  had  mentioned  any  suitor  but  the 
one  whose  claims  they  had  been  called  to  consider. 
As  women  were  allowed  to  speak  on  these  occasions, 
Cloud  Bird,  eldest  of  Yellow-Iron's  sisters,  was  next 
to  rise.  The  old  lady  was  of  a  blunt  nature  and  at 
no  time  feared  to  speak  her  mind.  Her  face  was 
flushed  with  indignation. 

"  I  do  not  see  my  niece  here ;  "  she  said,  "  doubt- 
less she  is  out  walking  where  she  will  meet  some  fine 
young  chief.  I  do  not  think  he  will  wear  a  Cheyenne 
bonnet,  and  if  he  is  as  brave  as  I  have  heard  he  will 
carry  the  girl  off  on  his  pony." 

"  Han  !  han  !  han  ! "  her  sisters  applauded,  and 
again  the  faces  of  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi  shone 
with  pleasure. 

Falling  Leaf's  turn  for  speech  had  come.  She 
was  a  little,  wrinkled  old  lady  with  a  voice  thin  and 
shrill  as  the  winter  wind.  She  knocked  the  ashes 
from  her  pipe  and  peered  at  her  chieftain  brother 


186  A  FAMILY  COUNCIL 

from  under  a  mop  of  grizzled  hair,  stooping  toward 
him  as  she  gained  her  feet. 

"  I  have  understood,"  she  shrilled,  "  that  the  medi- 
cine-god-woman is  dead  !  "  She  shook  a  lean  finger 
pointedly  to  mark  the  emphasis.  "  Surely,  some- 
where the  evil  ones  are  plaguing  her  ghost ! "  she 
added,  her  voice  rising  to  an  attenuated  scream. 
Then  she  flounced  down  upon  her  robe. 

The  relatives  were  for  the  most  part  astonished  at 
the  boldness  of  aunt  Falling  Leaf.  The  tiny  old 
woman  had  bearded  the  lion  in  his  den ;  and  if 
Yellow-Iron  had  roughly  ordered  her  out  none  of 
her  sisters-in-law  would  have  felt  surprise.  To  shake 
the  finger  at  one  in  his  own  lodge  was  a  very  grave 
offense.  Save  a  slight  wrinkling  about  the  corners 
of  the  eyes,  however,  and  which  might  have  indi- 
cated a  humorous  appreciation,  the  chief  gave  no 
sign. 

The  younger  sister  Three  Owls  spoke  with  reluc- 
tance and  evidently  from  a  sense  of  duty. 

"  I  have  always  been  very  fond  of  my  niece,"  she 
said,  "  and  I  desire  that  she  may  make  a  good  mar- 
riage and  live  long  and  be  useful  to  her  people." 

Save  for  The  Sky  and  Keyahanhi  this  closed  the 
case  for  the  defense.  The  brothers  and  sisters  of 
The  Buffalo  Woman,  whose  turn  came  next  and 
who,  on  the  women's  side  were  entitled  to  speak  as 


A  FAMILY  COUNCIL  187 

mothers  of  Tokala,  fell  in  line  with  the  wishes  of 
their  chief.  To  the  last  individual  each  spoke  in 
praise  of  the  Cheyenne  warrior,  Dancing  Bear.  Each 
one  seemed  to  have  come  prepared  to  support  Yellow- 
Iron  and  several  of  them  were  loaded  with  informa- 
tion, gathered  among  the  Cheyennes.  The  Buffalo 
Woman's  brothers  Turning  Eagle  and  Spotted  Horse 
were  able  to  relate  many  deeds  to  the  advantage  of 
Dancing  Bear.  The  fact  that  all  his  people  spoke 
well  of  him  was  adduced  as  a  powerful  argument  in 
his  favour.  At  each  point  scored  by  his  partisan 
relatives  Yellow-Iron  showed  appreciation.  They 
had  primed  themselves  with  information  without  his 
knowledge  and  the  thorough  and  hearty  nature  of 
their  support  surprised  and  pleased  him. 

"  Han,  han,  han,"  he  assented  with  enthusiasm, 
when  a  strong  point  was  made  in  his  favour. 

When  all  his  wife's  relatives  had  been  seated 
Yellow-Iron's  satisfaction  was  evident.  He  would 
have  been  glad  to  have  had  his  own  brothers  and 
sisters  heartily  with  him  in  making  the  choice  of  a 
husband  for  Tokala.  As  no  one  of  these  had  said 
anything  against  the  Cheyenne  he  chose  to  ignore  a 
veiled  meaning  in  the  remarks  of  several  of  them. 

There  was  but  one  speaker  who  still  had  the  right 
to  be  heard  in  this  council,  and  that  was  Yellow- 
Iron's  wife,  The  Sky.     It  was  the  custom  among  the 


188  A   FAMILY  COUNCIL 

Sioux  that  any  member  of  a  family  thus  called  for 
consultation  might,  if  he  or  she  chose,  speak  by 
proxy. 

The  Sky  did  not  arise.  She  turned  her  eyes  upon 
her  husband,  and  said, "  My  son  Keyahanhi  will  speak 
for  me." 

Neither  she  nor  Keyahanhi  had  now  any  hope  that 
this  conference  would  result  in  favour  of  Tokala's 
choice. 

Keyahanhi  advanced  within  the  circle  and  began 
with  diffidence.  He  spoke  at  first  in  a  low  voice  yet 
with  much  emotion. 

"  I  am  but  a  youth,"  he  said,  "  and  weak  in  coun- 
cil. What  matters  it  then  what  I  shall  say  ?  Tokala 
Noni  is  my  sister,  and  the  heart  of  Keyahanhi  can 
have  no  wish  that  is  not  hers.  Rather  than  see  my 
sister  married  to  a  man  whom  she  does  not  love  I 
would  offer  my  broken  body  as  a  sacrifice.  Here  am 
I ;  let  me  be  slain  if  I  speak  not  the  truth.  There  is 
one  who  is  now  war-chief  of  a  great  nation  who  has 
long  wished  to  marry  my  sister.  Need  I  speak  that 
man's  name  ?  Does  not  every  one  of  the  clan  of 
Yellow-Iron  know  that  Cloud  Chief  loves  my  sister 
and  that  Tokala  Noni  would  die  sooner  than  be  the 
wife  of  a  Cheyenne  ?  Why  the  folly  of  this  discus- 
sion ?  It  appears  that  we  have  talked  against  the 
wind.     Who  is  he  that  could  coerce  Tokala  Noni  ? 


A  FAMILY  COUNCIL  189 

He  who  proposes  to  do  so  had  best  raise  his  hatchet 
and  strike  her  dead  at  his  feet.  And  thus  would  I 
do  sooner  than  put  her  captive  into  the  arms  of  a  man 
whom  she  could  not  follow  willingly. 

"  It  appears  to  me  that  we  have  overlooked  some 
things  in  this  council.  I  am  aware  that  the  Cheyennes 
have  many  brave  warriors  and  good  men  among 
them.  An  alliance  with  them  is  desirable.  But  if 
alliances  are  to  be  made  by  marriage  let  us  consider 
the  Absaroke.  One  of  our  own  nation  has  lately 
become  chief  war-leader  among  them.  Four  winters 
have  passed,  and  these  people  who  were  deadly  ene- 
mies have  not  since  struck  at  a  Dakota.  We  have 
not  lost  a  pony  or  a  dog  by  the  hand  of  an  Absaroke 
since  Koska,  the  Brule,  became  head  chief  of  that  peo- 
pie.  The  Absaroke  are  three  times  more  numerous 
than  the  Cheyennes.  To  send  Tokala  Noni  among 
them  as  the  wife  of  Cloud  Chief  will  be  to  bind  them 
to  us  by  a  tie  which  cannot  be  broken  during  her 
lifetime.  We  shall  make  a  peace ;  there  will  be  no 
war  between  us  when  their  chief  has  taken  the  rose 
of  the  Oglalas  into  his  lodge.     I  have  spoken." 

The  faint  heart  with  which  Keyahanhi  had  begun 
to  talk  had  quickly  departed  from  him.  He  had  sud- 
denly felt — plainly  felt — the  influence  of  a  good  spirit, 
and  his  heart  grew  strong.  Before  the  finish  he  spoke 
boldly,  as  one  having  authority,  and  when  he  had 


190  A  FAMILY  COUNCIL 

ended  the  applause  of  Yellow-Iron's  elders,  who  had 
first  spoken,  was  hearty  and  delighted. 

The  Sky  who  had  been  affected  to  tears  now  sat 
expectantly  smiling  upon  her  husband. 

"  We  will  not  talk  further  of  this  matter  at  pres- 
ent," said  Yellow-Iron.  His  face  was  inscrutable  in 
its  gravity,  and  his  guests  understood  that  the  meet- 
ing had  been  dismissed. 


XV 
THE   SUN    DANCE 

IN  the  moon  of  best  grass  they  were  ready  to  be- 
gin the  ceremonies  of  the  sun  dance.  The 
Oglalas  had  already  completed  a  semicircular 
lodge ;  and  to  give  room  for  large  exhibition  they  had 
made  the  half-enclosure  to  cover  more  than  one  hun- 
dred yards  between  extremities.  The  cutting  of  the 
sun-pole  had  been  left  for  the  opening  of  the  dance. 

When  they  were  ready  for  this  a  woman  conse- 
crated to  the  task  was  sent  to  a  coulee  among  the 
sand  hills  where,  after  praying  to  the  sun,  she  chose  a 
tree  which  was  to  serve  as  the  sacred  emblem  of  the 
ceremonies. 

When  this  had  been  done  a  troop  of  tried  warriors, 
led  by  the  woman  and  followed  by  crowds  of  onlook- 
ers, rode  to  the  pine  hills.  Upon  arrival  the  woman 
halted  before  the  tree  she  had  selected. 

Having  indicated  the  tree  she  offered  a  second 
prayer  to  the  sun.  When  she  had  finished  she  raised 
her  hatchet  and  advanced  swiftly  upon  the  tree ;  she 
paused  at  its  root,  turned  slowly,  facing  each  point 
of  the  compass  four  times,  and  then  struck  a  vigorous 
blow.     Leaving  her  hatchet  embedded  in  the  green 

191 


192  THE  SUN  DANCE 

trunk  she  retired  quickly.  Five  warriors  came  for- 
ward in  alternation,  struck  the  tree  and  returned  to 
the  ranks.  The  woman  was  called  to  give  the  finish- 
ing blows.  Upon  the  fall  of  the  tree  the  war-party, 
crowding  upon  each  other,  sprang  forward  and  each 
hit  the  trunk  with  his  coup-stick. 

The  pole  was  then  trimmed  and  attached  to  the 
travois  of  a  pony.  Led  by  the  troop  which  had  at- 
tacked the  sun-pole,  the  concourse  of  mounted  riders 
rode  back  to  their  encampment. 

After  entering  at  the  north,  riders,  to  the  number 
of  several  thousands,  formed  in  semicircular  line — a 
line  which  extended  one-fourth  the  way  around  the 
area.  With  the  ends  of  this  line  in  the  van  the  troops 
advanced  at  a  swift  gallop,  each  rider  bending  for- 
ward and  waving  at  the  earth  a  stick  to  the  end  of 
which  was  attached  his  or  her  individual  wotawe  or 
mystery  charm.  The  ends  of  the  line,  however,  rode 
more  slowly  than  its  centre  and  they  swept  forward, 
whirling  their  sticks,  shouting  at  the  tops  of  their 
voices,  until  the  centre  had  advanced  to  the  front  and 
the  whole  of  the  enclosed  area  was  covered  by  the 
charge.  Then  the  order  of  attack  was  reversed  and 
from  the  foot  of  the  circuit  they  counter  charged. 
In  this  manner  all  evil  spirits  were  driven  from  the 
earth. 

On  the  following  morning  they  raised  the  sun-pole, 


THE  SUN  DANCE  193 

planting  it  in  the  centre  of  a  circle  described  by  the 
arc  of  the  sun  dance  lodge.  At  a  proper  time 
designated  by  a  crier,  who  went  the  rounds  of  the 
encampment,  candidates  for  the  honours  of  the  dance 
gathered  at  the  lodge  of  preparation.  After  them 
followed  the  famous  mystery  men  of  their  tribes,  who 
were  to  supervise  the  ceremonies.  Among  those 
present  were  Fire  Man  of  the  Pawnees,  Eagle  Elk  of 
the  Crows,  Dust  Maker  of  the  Kiowas,  Touch-the- 
Cloud  of  the  Arapahoes,  and  Keyahanhi  of  the  Ogla- 
las.  Each  of  these  wise  men  prayed  in  his  own 
manner  to  the  Most  Mysterious  and  offered  incense, 
of  burning  sweet  grass,  to  the  sun. 

Each  of  the  candidates,  to  the  number  of  thirty, 
was  asked  in  turn  to  declare  to  a  mystery  man  his  in- 
tent of  endeavour  in  the  trial  to  come.  They 
arose  one  at  a  time.  But  little  variation  was  noted 
in  their  declarations  save  in  the  matter  of  small  de- 
tails. One  was  to  "  dance  to  the  pole,"  another  "  to 
the  post,"  each  with  skewers  fastened  under  some 
portion  of  his  skin,  and  to  continue  to  dance  until 
he  had  broken  away.  One  chose  that  he  should 
dance  a  certain  period  of  time  before  allowing  his 
skin  to  be  cut ;  another  that  he  should  "  keep  to  the 
pole "  so  long  before  attempting  to  break  loose ; 
another  that  he  should  be  suspended  by  the  skin  of 
his  back.     Of  such  nature  were  the  self-imposed  tor- 


194  THE  SUN  DANCE 

tures — made  in  all  serious  intent  and  with  religious 
fervour — of  these  ambitious  young  braves. 

Catches  Eagles  was  the  last  to  declare  his  purpose 
which  was  to  dance  from  sun  to  sun — twenty-four 
hours — with  the  skewers  in  breast  and  arms,  taking 
neither  food  nor  water.  Among  the  workers  of 
mystery  there  was  commendation  of  this  young  man's 
devotion. 

Each  candidate  had  fasted  and  been  purified  in 
the  vapour  bath  and  at  the  close  of  "  preparation  " 
criers  were  sent  forth  to  call  the  people  together  in  a 
semicircular  concourse  facing  the  sun-pole.  Much 
time  was  consumed  in  completing  the  gathering. 

When  the  sun  was  four  hands  high  twoscore  of 
elkskin  drums,  beaten  by  one  hundred  and  twenty 
men,  boomed  the  announcement  that  the  sun  dance 
was  on.  Leaping  like  deer  from  covert  four  hundred 
braves,  naked  to  the  breech  cloth,  and  with  bodies 
painted,  each  in  individual  designs,  sprang  into  the 
enclosure  and  began  the  first  ceremonial  dance. 
These  circled  like  a  flying  army,  shouting  and  letting 
fly  their  arrows  at  the  sun-pole.  For  the  space  of  an 
hour  or  more  this  continued,  the  shooters  aiming  their 
arrows  so  that  the  weapons  should  pass  away  without 
injuring  the  onlookers. 

When  this  performance  was  finished  four  children 
from  each  village  were  brought  into  the  ring  to  have 


THE  SUN  DANCE  195 

their  ears  pierced.  This  was  a  ceremony  of  honour 
and  the  parents  of  the  children  gave  to  the  needy, 
ponies  and  other  property.  Each  child  to  be  so 
honoured  was  attended  by  its  mother  or  nearest 
female  relative,  who  laid  it  upon  its  back  on  a  new 
buffalo  robe  or  fresh  blanket.  A  mystery  worker  of 
the  tribe  came  forward,  made  signs  and  passes  and 
spoke  charmed  words  above  the  child's  head.  Then 
with  an  awl  of  keen  point  he  pierced  each  ear  and  at- 
tached a  pendant  of  Navajo  silver,  copper  or  other 
metal. 

While  this  was  doing  criers  upon  the  outskirts  of 
the  assembly  were  announcing  the  gifts  of  the 
parents.  Blankets,  trader's  cloth  and  much  other 
property  were  distributed.  The  ponies  to  be  given 
away  were  herded  within  a  ring  of  youths.  The 
recipients,  who  were  among  the  very  poor,  were 
aligned — equi-distant  from  the  point  of  outlet — and 
as  each  gift  of  a  pony  was  "  cried  "  and  the  animal 
turned  out  of  its  human  enclosure  the  donees 
scrambled  for  possession. 

The  ceremony  of  the  chaste  young  maidens  fol- 
lowed that  of  the  initiation  of  the  children.  Attired 
in  their  best  robes  a  large  company  of  young  girls, 
gathered  from  all  the  tribes,  entered  the  ring  and 
circled  four  times  around  the  sun-pole.  Then  in  turn 
each  went  forward  and  touched  the  mystery  tree  in 


196  THE  SUN  DANCE 

declaration  of  her  virginity.  It  had  been  told  these 
young  girls  that  if  one  of  them  should  "  lie  to  the 
sun  "  death  or  disease  must  quickly  follow  her  declara- 
tion. 

When  the  young  women  had  retired  the  candidates 
entered  the  enclosure  for  their  dance.  Each  was 
again  obliged  to  announce  what  he  intended  to  do  and 
the  declarations  which  had  been  made  to  the  mystery 
men  were  repeated.  After  this  the  men  danced  until 
night  fell  when  they  rested  for  the  trial  of  the  flesh 
which  was  to  begin  the  next  morning. 

The  sun  was  perhaps  two  hands  high  when  the 
people  again  gathered  before  the  lodge  of  the  sun. 
All  preparation  had  been  made  and  each  candidate 
was  now  stretched  upon  his  back  while  the  mystery 
workers  cut  his  skin  and  inserted  skewers  of  deer's 
horn  or  of  wood  through  the  slits.  He  was  then 
attached  by  a  rawhide  rope  to  post  or  sun-pole. 

The  vital  ceremony  now  began.  The  young  men 
threw  themselves  back  upon  the  thongs  which  held 
them,  fastened  their  eyes  upon  the  decorated  top  of 
the  sacred  sun-pole  and  danced. 

It  was  no  mark  of  cowardice  or  weakness  that 
one  should  cry  out  with  pain  when  so  engaged ; 
yet  the  young  men  set  their  teeth  in  stern  resolve 
and  for  a  time  no  groan  of  distress  was  heard. 

Until  sunset  the  drums  boomed  and  the  chant  of 


THE  SUN  DANCE  197 

L 

the  tortured  rose  in  high-keyed  wails.  The  people 
kept  their  places  looking  upon  the  frenzied  efforts  of 
the  dancers.  Some  of  the  weaker  of  these  fainted 
and  were  brought  to  by  having  water  thrown  upon 
them  or  were  borne  away  to  take  up  their  tasks  later. 

Those  who  declared  their  purpose  of  breaking 
away  at  once  were  presently  heard  to  groan  and 
lament,  praying  to  the  Most  Mysterious  to  assist 
them  in  their  efforts.  Such  lamentations  were  ex- 
pected and  counted  nothing  against  the  manfulness 
of  those  who  indulged  in  them ;  those  who  swooned 
were  also  exonerated  from  any  fault. 

A  half-dozen  of  the  more  hardy  braves,  and 
among  these  Catches  Eagles,  danced  valiantly, 
bravely  chanting  faith  in  the  powers  of  their  own 
miraculous  wotawe.  This  they  did  until  the  sun 
was  hidden. 

When  Wi  had  dipped  beneath  the  earth  the 
assembly  gradually  dissolved  and  each  family  re- 
turned to  its  teepee  for  the  evening  meal. 


On  the  first  and  second  evenings  of  the  sun 
dance  maidens  of  the  villages  were  wont  to  go 
strolling  and  at  such  times  they  expected  to  meet 
and  to  speak  to  young  men  who  had  sought  their 
favour  during  the  encampment. 


198  THE  SUN  DANCE 

Usually  the  young  women  went  in  pairs  or  groups 
on  these  occasions ;  but  there  was  no  law  of  custom 
which  prevented  wandering  alone  and  Tokala  chose 
to  isolate  herself  from  others. 

At  the  distance  of  five  or  six  bow-shots  from  the 
Oglala  village,  going  toward  that  of  the  Assiniboins, 
there  was  a  white  boulder  which  was  the  monument 
of  many  a  solitary  vigil.  To  this  rock  Tokala  re- 
paired because  she  wished  to  be  alone  with  her 
happiness. 

Two  suns  had  passed  since  the  family  council  had 
met  to  consider  the  bestowal  of  herself  in  marriage. 
Tokala  had  been  left  in  suspense  until  just  before 
criers  had  called  the  people  to  assemble  on  that 
morning.  The  Sky  had  gone  with  Ota  to  the  lodge 
of  Keyahanhi,  and  Yellow-Iron  had  spoken  with 
her. 

"  My  daughter,"  he  said,  "  three  men  of  the  vil- 
lages here  have  sent  presents  to  me  and  each  has 
desired  that  you  shall  enter  his  teepee.  I  called  to- 
gether your  uncles  and  aunts  that  we  might  properly 
consider  the  matter  and  it  is  determined  that  you 
shall  marry  Cloud  Chief  of  the  Crows.  When  he 
has  done  those  things  which  are  proper  I  desire  that 
you  shall  become  his  wife.     That  is  all." 

Tokala  had  said  nothing.  She  could  not  because 
of  the  confusion  of  her  sudden  happiness. 


THE  SUN  DANCE  199 

All  day  her  heart  had  sung  within  her — in  the 
midst  of  the  great  crowds,  the  noise  of  the  drums, 
the  chanting  and  the  dancing. 

Wimima,  the  moon,  was  shining  when  Tokala 
reached  the  rock  of  the  solitary.  She  sat  for  a  long 
time  upon  the  boulder.  She  gazed  upon  the  broad, 
comely  face  of  Wimima,  wife  of  the  sun.  In  that 
benevolent  presence  among  the  million  lesser  lights 
Tokala  read  her  augury  of  happiness  to  come. 

"  Oh,  Wimima,"  she  prayed,  "  look  upon  me  al- 
ways with  kindness ;  let  me  be  to  my  husband  all 
that  his  heart  can  wish ;  give  me  strength  to  live  as 
a  Dakota  wife  should  live  and  also  as  the  wife  of  an 
Absaroke;  that  I  may  bear  my  burdens  without 
complaint.     Listen,  oh,  Wimima,  grant  my  prayer ! " 


XVI 
DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN 

THE  people  of  the  villages  gave  themselves 
up  to  enjoyment.  This  was  the  custom  of 
the  sun  dance.  At  twilight  of  evening  the 
candidates  were  deserted  by  all  save  the  mystery 
workers  and  such  attendants  as  were  necessary. 

At  the  Assiniboin  village  there  was  a  fete  which 
called  out  the  larger  part  of  the  people.  This  was 
an  innovation  upon  the  Mandan  "  Dance  of  the 
Strong  Men."  Only  chief  warriors,  partisans  and 
great  leaders,  took  part  and  the  flower  of  the  men 
of  the  buffalo  plains  were  engaged  on  this  occasion. 

Each  brave  came  arrayed  in  his  dress  of  state  and, 
within  the  recollection  of  the  oldest  present,  there 
had  never  been  seen  together  so  many  great  figures 
stepping  to  the  measures  of  a  chant. 

An  enumeration  of  those  who  danced  at  the 
Assiniboin  village  would  suggest  many  pages  of 
history.  Among  those  present  and  active  were 
Red  Cloud,  American  Horse,  Spotted  Tail,  Gall, 
High  Wolf,  Sitting  Bull  and  Yellow-Iron  of  the 
Sioux  ;  Cloud  Chief,  Gray  Bull  and  Stands  Alone  of 
the   Crows ;    Tall    Buffalo    and    One    Man    of    the 

200 


DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN       201 

Comanches ;  Chief  Mountain  of  the  Blackfeet ; 
Ouray  of  the  Utes ;  Yellow  Sun  of  the  Pawnees  and 
many  other  well  known  fighters  and  leaders. 

At  this  dance  there  were  none  of  the  usual 
emblems  or  symbols  displayed.  In  its  ordinary 
performance  it  was  a  unique  custom.  On  this 
night  it  was  a  fete  extraordinary,  in  honour  of  the 
master  of  ceremonies.  Dancers  did  not  move 
around  a  fire,  but  within  a  circle  of  fire-poles. 
These  poles  were  light  saplings  of  ash,  topped  with 
knots  of  pitch-pine  and  attended  by  boys,  whose 
duty  it  was  to  replace  each  knot  as  the  blaze  died 
out. 

No  drums  were  beaten  except  as  signals.  The 
dancers  moved  to  and  fro  in  platoons — the  space  of 
one's  body  apart — in  which  each  alternate  man 
passed  through  the  opposing  file  leaping  on  either 
foot  to  the  measures  of  a  chant  in  which  any  of  the 
onlookers  might  take  part.  And  their  repetitive 
songs  were  of  the  deeds  of  strong  men. 

Those  who  took  the  chief  part  sat  in  long  rows 
under  the  lights  and  in  front  of  the  audience,  and 
only  danced  at  intervals  and  in  brief  measures  in 
which  each  platoon  passed  to  and  fro  a  certain  num- 
ber of  times.  Much  of  the  time  was  spent  in  rest, 
smoking  or  talking. 

These   intervals   were   filled   by   some  voluntary, 


202       DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN 

usually  an  old  man,  who  walked  with  stately  tread 
forth  and  back  between  the  lines  reciting  his  deeds 
of  war,  of  diplomacy,  or  of  the  chase.  With  gesture 
and  mimicry  these  hale  old  warriors  recounted  their 
exploits.  When  one  had  touched  upon  some  par- 
ticularly daring  or  praiseworthy  deed  the  drums 
emphasized  his  recital  with  a  single  "  Boom-bomm !  " 
as  explosive  as  the  bursting  of  a  shell. 

No  one  was  obliged  to  listen  to  these  monologues 
save  half-a-score  of  drum  beaters  who  gave  them 
strict  attention. 

When  called  to  dance  the  platoons  leaped  to  their 
feet  as  a  single  man.  This  was  at  a  signal,  again  the 
sudden  boom-bomm !  of  two  drums  whose  beaters 
sat  at  the  ends  of  the  cleared  area.  In  some  occult 
manner  the  drummers  seemed  to  divine  at  just  what 
instant  the  performers  were  ready  for  exercise.  It 
was  a  fascinating  fete  and  the  chief  attraction  of  the 
moment. 

This  dance  had  been  arranged  by  Catches  Eagles, 
master  of  ceremonies.  It  was  a  diplomatic  move  on 
his  part,  and  one  worthy  of  an  older  and  wilier  brain. 
As  has  been  said  the  election  of  a  man  so  young  to 
be  chief  marshal  at  a  sun  dance  was  unknown.  The 
youth  who  had  been  so  fortunate  in  the  choice,  while 
he  felt  a  large  measure  of  exaltation,  had  been  shrewd 
enough  not  to  let  this  appear  on  the  surface.     He 


DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN       203 

was  looking  to  further  advancement,  and  very  pos- 
sibly was  duly  grateful  to  the  elders  of  his  tribe  for 
his  momentary  elevation. 

This  dance  of  Mandan  origin  and  of  the  weaker 
tribe  present,  as  he  had  planned  and  announced  it 
by  criers,  was  his  boldest  stroke  so  far.  He  had  set 
his  mind  upon  the  problem  of  awakening  a  personal 
interest  in  himself  among  the  noted  men  foregath- 
ered. The  dance  of  the  strong  men  offered  an  op- 
portunity and  he  had  grasped  it  in  rather  a  masterly 
way.  The  forth  and  back  movement  of  the  platoons 
to  the  rhythmic  chant  of  a  multitude  was  an  inspiring 
performance.  It  was  success  beyond  the  expectation 
of  its  originator.  It  was  the  Mandan  dance  in  name 
chiefly  and  to  the  measure  of  its  acceptance  was 
added  the  value  of  novel  emotions. 

High  chiefs  danced  or  not  as  they  chose.  When 
one  left  his  line  to  go  among  the  onlookers  another 
sat  in  his  place,  and  the  lines  were  kept  practically 
unbroken. 

The  Sky  and  Tokala  sat  together  and,  as  usual, 
the  younger  had  Ota  at  her  side.  So  lively  an  infant 
could  by  no  means  be  kept  in  bed  while  his 
elders  were  at  the  dances.  Wide  awake  as  an  owl, 
his  whoops  were  as  frequent  as  the  hoots  of  that 
night  bird.  Tokala  and  The  Sky  were  very  proud 
on  this  evening.     It  appeared  that  the  husband  and 


204       DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN 

father  had  never  shown  to  such  advantage.  His 
dress  was  superb.  He  had  on  clean,  newly-beaded 
buckskins,  the  last  shirt  and  leggings  which  together 
they  had  made  for  him,  and  the  war-bonnet  which 
had  been  fashioned  in  the  south  country.  To  his 
head-dress  The  Sky  and  Tokala  had  made  additions 
in  ornaments  until  it  was  gorgeous  beyond  any  save 
the  one  worn  by  Cloud  Chief. 

Yellow-Iron  and  the  Absaroka  chief  were  consid- 
ered the  striking  figures  in  this  dance  of  the  strong 
men.  Cloud  Chief's  dress  was  materially  different 
from  the  one  he  had  worn  at  the  Cheyenne  Buffalo 
Dance.  A  bonnet  of  war  eagles'  feathers,  white, 
with  black  tips,  and  tasseled  in  the  down  of  scarlet 
tanagers,  adorned  his  head.  Leggings  and  shirt  were 
of  yellow  fawn-skin,  plaited  in  various  figures  with 
stained  porcupine  quills.  For  ornaments  he  wore  a 
pipe-bone  breast-plate,  a  string  of  silver  beads  which 
he  had  taken  from  the  Susuni,  his  necklace  of  grizzly 
bears'  claws,  arm-bracelets  of  solid  copper  and  curi- 
ous beads.  Never  had  he  appeared  so  handsome. 
He  knew  at  last  that  he  was  to  marry  Tokala ;  for  in 
some  fashion  a  little  bird  had  carried  the  news  of 
Yellow-Iron's  decision.  The  chief  of  the  Crows 
knew  not  only  that  her  father  had  given  consent,  but 
that  the  sweetheart  of  four  years  agone  was  still  his 
own.     He  was  happy  and  he  danced  as  one  inspired. 


DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN       205 

Yet  there  was  nothing  in  his  movement  of  the 
leaping,  shouting  Koska  of  the  Brules.  His  con- 
spicuousness  was  only  in  the  allowable  splendour  of 
his  dress.  In  manner  he  was  wholly  unassuming 
and  he  did  not  lift  his  voice  above  that  of  his  elders 
in  the  chant.  He  had  learned  his  lesson  in  the  long 
ago,  and  was  now  the  modest  and  amiable  young 
leader  of  fighting  men.  The  heart  which  had  been 
his  for  so  many  winters  was  near  to  bursting  with 
pride  as  the  Oglala  maiden  sat,  looking  upon  him 
without  reserve.  He  was  to  be  Tokala's  husband 
and  all  the  world  would  know  it  soon ;  she  felt  no 
diffidence  in  showing  pride  in  her  splendid  warrior. 

When  after  a  time  he  left  the  line  and  came  and 
sat  near  to  her,  in  the  midst  of  her  clan,  she  talked 
with  him  as  she  might  have  talked  with  Keyahanhi. 
It  was  all  very  simple  and  natural  and  delightful. 
Friends  were  about  her  and  when  the  young  man, 
fresh  from  his  exercise  and  with  shining  eyes, 
dropped  upon  the  ground  confronting  her  every  face 
in  the  clan  of  Yellow-Iron  was  aglow  with  pleasure. 

Cloud  Chief  returned  on  several  occasions  to  take 
a  seat  confronting  Tokala.  In  time  most  of  the 
members  of  her  clan  gathered  near.  Pawnee  Man, 
Whirlwind  Soldier,  Falling  Leaf,  Cloud  Bird  and  a 
number  of  others  close  of  kin  formed  a  group  around 
The   Sky   and  Tokala.     The    significance   of   this 


206       DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN 

family  party  could  not  fail  to  be  understood  by  any 
who  knew  the  members. 

Yellow-Iron's  clan  showed  its  pride  and  satisfaction 
in  the  match,  about  to  be  made  by  a  favourite 
daughter,  as  plainly,  yet  as  decorously,  as  might 
have  been  done  by  a  Fifth  Avenue  group  in  an 
opera  box.  And  Tokala  accepted  the  homage  thus 
paid  in  the  royal  manner  of  the  favourite  of  a  clan. 

Even  her  small  charge  Ota,  took  kindly  to  a  new 
accession  to  the  family  circle.  After  he  had  a  second 
time  taken  a  seat  near  Tokala  Cloud  Chief  became 
a  favourite  with  the  youngster.  Presently  the  infant 
struggled  away  from  his  guardian,  waddled  gravely 
to  the  side  of  the  chief  and  sat  down,  crossing  his  fat 
legs  and  posing  himself  after  this  new  model  among 
his  warrior  friends. 

At  this  grave  mimickry  of  the  beloved  Cinca  of 
their  clan  there  was  a  hearty  laugh,  and  every  face 
in  the  family  gathering  showed  appreciation. 

Cloud  Chief  turned  to  the  child,  his  own  white 
teeth  gleaming  with  pleasure,  took  from  his  arm  a 
bracelet  of  spotted,  or  "  snake  "  beads,  unwound  the 
strings  and  slipped  them  over  the  small  lad's  neck. 

"  Han  !  han  !  han  ! "  acknowledged  all  the  kinfolk 
and  many  others  who  were  near  enough  to  see  the 
action.  And  the  tiny  fellow,  usually  full  of  high 
spirits  and  ready  to  shout   his   small  pleasure  and 


DANCE  OF  THE  STRONG  MEN       207 

commands,  responded  only  by  a  stiffer  and  more 
stately  pose.  A  flush  crept  into  the  round  cheeks 
and  stayed  there,  and  the  large  eyes  shone  like 
black  diamonds. 


XVII 
THE   BITTERNESS   OF   SUCCESS 

AT  noon  of  the  second  day  the  master  of  cere- 
monies, last  dancer  at  the  sun-pole,  had 
broken  away ;  all  the  initiates  had  been  con- 
ducted or  carried  back  to  the  lodge  of  preparation. 
Criers  announced  that  these  had  finished  and  that 
each  had  borne  himself  as  a  man  of  valour  and  en- 
durance. There  was  a  thunderous  boom,  a  bursting 
of  drum-heads,  and  the  sun  dance  was  finished. 

The  assembly  dispersed  and  the  people  returned 
to  their  several  villages.  On  every  hand  there  was 
praise  of  the  young  warrior,  Catches  Eagles,  who 
had  fulfilled  his  vow  and  his  promise  at  initiation. 
He  had  danced  from  sun  to  sun,  having  fainted  but 
twice  when  he  had  revived  quickly  as  the  mystery 
men  threw  water  upon  him. 

The  young  man  went  to  his  lodge,  slept  pro- 
foundly for  twenty-four  hours  and  awoke  to  find 
himself  as  famous  as  his  heart  could  have  wished, 
but  to  discover  that  he  had  lost  the  one  thing  most 
desirable,  the  hope  to  possess  Tokala  for  his  wife. 

People  at    the    Oglala    and    Absaroke    villages 

208 


THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS      209 

had  quickly  learned  that  the  daughter  of  Yellow- 
Iron  was  about  to  become  the  wife  of  Cloud 
Chief.  Among  the  Oglalas  there  was  much  satisfac- 
tion and  many  of  the  Crows  rejoiced  in  the  prospect 
of  this  event. 

"  Now,"  these  said,  "  we  will  make  a  peace  with 
the  Oglalas,  who  have  been  our  most  powerful  ene- 
mies. There  will  be  no  fighting  between  us  here- 
after, for  our  clans  will  have  intermingled  their  blood. 
We  shall  stand  together  against  our  enemies." 

In  the  meantime  the  master  of  ceremonies  had 
awakened  and  sat  in  his  lodge  eating  meat.  His 
mother  told  him,  to  his  intense  delight,  what  the 
people  were  saying  of  himself  and  then  suddenly 
poured  the  gall  of  spirit  into  his  wounds  of  the 
flesh. 

"  While  you  were  dancing  and  fulfilling  your  vow," 
she  said,  "  another  has  been  courting  Tokala  Noni. 
It  is  now  known  that  the  daughter  of  Yellow-Iron 
will  go  to  the  north  as  the  wife  of  Cloud  Chief.  You 
should  have  done  as  I  advised.  Lo,  there  are  many 
young  women  in  the  clan  of  Yellow-Iron.  There 
are  four  in  the  lodge  of  Whirlwind  Soldier  and 
you  may  marry  the  eldest  of  these  and  the  others 
in  succession ;  thus  you  will  become  powerful 
through  your  kinsmen." 

To  this    Catches  Eagles  answered  nothing.     He 


210      THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS 

was  stunned  for  the  moment  at  the  calamity  which 
had  fallen.  For  three  winters  he  had  looked  upon 
Tokala  as  the  one  desirable  woman.  The  daughter 
of  Yellow-  Iron  had  seemed  set  apart  and  aloof  from 
all  suitors.  She  was  only  to  be  won  by  a  man  whose 
wotawe  should  bring  him  extraordinary  success.  He 
had  of  late — despite  some  repulses  from  the  proud 
girl — had  no  doubt  that  he  was  to  be  the  fortunate 
man. 

He  had  not  thought  of  the  chief  of  the  Crows  as  a 
rival,  having  been  too  busy  in  his  office  as  marshal 
of  the  sun  dance,  and  in  his  personal  preparation  for 
its  ceremonies,  to  keep  pace  with  the  news  of  the  big 
camp.  It  had  not  come  to  his  ears  that  a  warrior  of 
the  Cheyennes  was  seeking  Tokala  and  his  own  pro- 
posal had  been  prompted  only  when  all  things  had 
seemed  propitious  for  success. 

Naturally  Catches  Eagles  was  possessed  of  the 
spirit  of  intrigue.  An  exterior  of  a  stoic  concealed 
the  ambitious  wiles  of  a  politician.  His  success  in 
managing  a  big  meeting,  and  especially  in  securing 
the  execution  of  a  dance  of  the  strong  men  upon  the 
lines  which  he  had  laid  down,  was  remarkable. 

He  had,  in  fact,  had  reason  to  hope,  when  all  his 
plans  had  carried,  that  he  would  be  a  favoured  suitor 
at  the  lodge  of  Yellow- Iron.  When  it  was  fixed  in 
his  mind  that  the  chief  of  a  visiting  tribe — numbered, 


THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS      211 

too,  among  enemies  of  the  Dakotas — was  to  carry 
off  the  prize  his  bitterness  of  soul  was  boundless.  It 
was  not  a  visible  rage  which  possessed  him,  but  the 
deep,  fierce  resistance  of  a  passionate  soul  in  arms 
against  the  dealing  of  fate.  His  labours  at  the  sun 
dance  and  the  pains  he  had  borne  had  been  Herculean 
in  their  nature.  The  fever  of  his  wounds  was  rioting 
in  his  blood  and,  in  the  fierceness  of  disappointment, 
now  set  his  brain  on  fire. 

For  a  time,  while  the  booming  of  drums  announced 
the  renewal  of  village  fetes,  he  sat  with  face  in  his 
hands.  One  after  another  schemes  of  revenge  against 
the  chief  of  the  Crows  chased  each  other  through  his 
hot  brain.  Kill  him  ?  He  wanted  but  the  oppor- 
tunity to  sheathe  his  knife  in  the  body  and  bury  his 
hatchet  in  the  brain  of  the  apostate  enemy.  He  sat 
brooding,  until  sitting  could  no  longer  be  endured, 
and  then  arose,  concealed  a  knife  and  bow  and  arrows 
beneath  the  blanket  which  he  threw  over  his  shoul- 
ders, and  passed  beyond  the  range  of  camp  lights. 
As  upon  a  former  occasion,  when  he  had  gone 
forth  from  his  mother's  teepee,  a  weak  and  aimless 
youth,  phrases  hummed  through  his  brain  and  were 
repeated  on  his  lips. 

"  He  shall  die !  he  shall  die  !  he  shall  die !  the 
flower  of  the  Oglalas  shall  never  enter  his  lodge !  " 

This  was  the  burden  of  his  thought  and  of  his  mut- 


212      THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS 

tered  utterance  as  he  strode  swiftly  forth  from  the 
Sans  Arc  village  and  made  his  way  to  solitude  among 
the  sand-hills. 

He  had  no  purpose  for  the  moment  save  to  be 
alone,  and  he  strode  on  with  long  swinging  steps 
hurrying  away  from  the  irritating  noises  of  chant 
and  drum. 

He  was  no  longer  a  youth  but  a  man,  transformed 
by  a  supreme  success  followed  by  a  supreme  disap- 
pointment. Wimima,  with  an  edge  beginning  to 
fray,  had  mounted  to  the  height  of  a  hand  when  the 
fierce  warrior  entered  the  sand-hills.  He  was  distant 
ten  bow  shots  from  the  outskirts  of  the  villages,  and 
nearing  the  shadows  of  Bear  Butte,  when  a  figure  of 
ghostly  outline  dawned  upon  his  blurred  vision.  It 
was  that  of  a  woman  or  a  girl  slipping  swiftly  away 
in  his  front.  In  his  right  mind,  the  Sans  Arc  would 
have  respected  the  wish  of  this  female  for  solitude. 
But  he  was  not  in  a  mood  to  respect  anybody's  wish 
for  anything  and  he  swiftly  followed  the  girl  until  he 
could  grasp  her  by  an  arm. 

"  Who  are  you  ?  "  he  demanded  roughly,  but  not 
until  he  had  seen  before  him,  turned  at  bay,  the  face 
of  a  young  girl  whose  look  of  affright  and  appeal 
could  not,  even  by  moonlight,  have  been  mistaken. 

The  girl  spoke  in  a  weak  voice  and  in  the  dialect 
of  an  Absaroka.    "  Let  me  go ;  I  wish  to  be  alone. 


THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS      213 

I  wish  to  talk  with  no  one."  The  tongue  of  the 
Crow  and  of  the  Dakota  were  once  the  same  and 
Catches  Eagles'  grandmother  had  been  a  captive 
taken  from  an  Absaroka  village.  He  understood  the 
girl  quite  perfectly  and  answered  in  her  tongue. 
"  You  shall  not  go  until  you  tell  me  why  you  are 
here.  This  is  no  place  for  a  young  girl — without  the 
circle  of  the  villages.  I  am  master  of  ceremonies  and 
you  shall  tell  me  why  you  have  come  thus  far  alone." 

Releasing  his  captive  he  stepped  back  a  pace 
or  two.  At  his  words  the  girl — she  was  almost  a 
child — lost  her  fear.  The  great  master  of  ceremonies 
would  surely  harm  no  maiden  of  his  villages.  With 
confidence  restored  she  seated  herself  upon  the  grass. 
"  I  wish  to  be  alone,"  she  repeated  half  sullenly,  half 
deprecatingly,  yet  with  an  accent  and  a  manner 
which  did  not  forbid  the  great  man's  repeated  inquiry. 

"  Tell  me  who  you  are,"  Catches  Eagles  com- 
manded. 

The  girl  hesitated,  pulling  at  the  lush  grass  beside 
her.     Then  she  spoke. 

"  I  am  Wings  of  Morning,"  she  said,  "  daughter 
of  Touch-the-Sky  of  the  Absaroke.  I  came  away 
from  the  villages  because  I  was  tired  of  the  dancing 
and  the  drums.  I  wish  to  think  about  my  own  peo- 
ple. I  long  to  go  back  among  them  for  I  am  sick 
of  this  tiresome  place." 


214      THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS 

"  And  why  ?  "  persisted  the  master  of  ceremonies 
speaking  kindly,  yet  with  guile.  He  dropped  upon 
the  grass  confronting  her  and  sat,  at  ease,  his  teeth 
gleaming  in  an  encouraging  smile. 

"  Because  I  hate  this  place,"  she  said  vehemently, 
and  then  caught  her  breath  and  fell  to  sobbing. 

Catches  Eagles  waited  for  her  emotion  to  pass. 
Then  he  spoke  benevolently. 

"  My  daughter,"  he  said,  "  nothing  which  happens 
at  the  sun  dance  can  be  hidden  from  me.  My  tunkan 
(mystery  god)  tells  me  all  things.  I  know  why  you 
are  thus  wandering  alone.  One  whom  you  had 
hoped  to  marry  has  found  a  maiden  among  the 
strangers.  She  has  bewitched  him  and  an  evil  spirit 
has  sung  in  his  ear.  Tell  me  if  this  be  not  true." 
There  was  enough  of  truth,  in  his  power  of  divina- 
tion, to  astonish  the  maiden. 

"  It  is  true,"  she  answered,  quite  off  her  guard, 
"  that  our  great  chief  is  to  marry  a  Dakota  maiden 
but  I  do  not  think  that  he  has  listened  to  evil 
council.  He  is  my  brother-in-law;  I  know  him 
well ;  he  is  a  good  and  great  man." 

She  had  said  enough  to  furnish  her  wily  interlocu- 
tor with  the  cue  to  important  revelation.  His  blood 
again  rioted,  but  this  time  in  the  sudden  triumph  of 
hope.  The  "  great  chief"  of  the  Crows  !  This  could 
be  none  other  than  Cloud  Chief,  and  he  the  girl's 


THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS      215 

brother-in-law !  So  the  successful  rival  was  already 
married.  Did  Yellow-Iron — did  Tokala  know  this  ? 
He  believed  not.  Ha !  the  Absaroke  had  been  very 
cunning !  Tokala  Noni  was  not  one  to  become  sec- 
ond wife  to  a  foreign  chief. 

After  the  first  flush  of  exultation  he  considered  the 
matter  gravely  and  replied  to  the  Crow  girl. 

"  Since  Cloud  Chief  is  your  brother-in-law,"  he 
said,  "  and  is  married  to  your  elder  sister,  you  had 
expected  also  to  marry  him  ?  " 

The  girl  hung  her  head  and  her  silence  gave  him 
all  the  assurance  he  could  have  asked.  He  sprang 
lithely  to  his  feet. 

°  Be  of  good  heart,  my  daughter ; "  he  said, "  return 
to  your  mother's  teepee  and  sleep  soundly.  There 
are  many  young  men  as  handsome  and  as  brave  as 
this  brother-in-law  of  yours." 


The  seat  of  attraction,  on  the  night  following  the 
sun  dance,  was  near  the  Cheyenne  village,  and  was 
something  in  the  nature  of  a  stage  play.  Since  the 
dance  of  the  strong  men  there  had  been  developed  a 
feeling  of  rivalry.  But  few  of  the  very  famous  old 
men  had  been  heard  at  that  meeting.  Others  desired 
to  talk,  to  tell  of  their  deeds  and  incidentally  to  raise 
a  war  spirit  among  the  youth. 


216      THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS 

The  time  had  come  in  the  opinion  of  the  wise  ones 
when  combined  resistance  could  be  made  against  the 
enemies  of  all  Indians.  These  old  chiefs  and  war- 
riors had  been  able  to  see — at  least  all  who  had  vis- 
ited the  settlements — that  the  white  man  is  a  fixed 
inhabitant,  that  he  measures  a  piece  of  land  which 
becomes  his  own  and  builds  his  teepee  permanently, 
that  the  whole  area  of  the  earth  is  thus  occupied  and 
that  only  a  fenced  trail  is  left  to  those  who  require 
freedom  of  the  woods  and  prairies.  Now  that 
these  white  ones  were  at  war  with  each  other,  per- 
haps the  time  had  come  to  check  their  encroachments 
and  to  turn  them  back  indefinitely. 

Debating  these  things  an  inter-tribal  council  had 
decided  upon  a  meeting  of  the  old  men  and  warriors 
at  the  Cheyenne  village.  Hither  by  criers — for  the 
authority  of  the  master  of  ceremonies  was  no  longer 
recognized — they  had  invited  the  people  to  assemble. 
An  area  of  many  yards  in  diameter  brilliantly 
lighted  was,  in  response,  surrounded  by  a  big  con- 
course of  people.  These  had  come  desiring  to  hear 
the  gray  old  veterans  of  the  plains  tell  of  their  fight- 
ings and  their  triumphs  in  the  past. 

No  man  of  less  than  sixty  winters  was  heard  at 
this  meeting.  Each  speaker  in  turn,  'arrayed  in  his 
finest  war-dress,  walked  into  the  middle  of  the  lighted 
area  where  he  slowly  trod  to  and  fro  facing  probably 


THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS      217 

the  largest  audience  which  had  ever  listened  to  his 
voice. 

After  a  proud  march  he  began  slowly  and  im- 
pressively to  tell  his  story.  He  spoke  in  his  own 
tongue,  but  with  many  interpreters.  Each  tribe  of 
those  assembled  had  its  section  in  the  circle.  Con- 
fronting each  tribal  group  stood  an  interpreter,  who 
understood  the  language  of  the  orator  and  of  his  im- 
mediate audience,  and  who  rendered  phrase  by  phrase 
the  speech  of  the  moment. 

The  occasion  was  inspiring,  and  those  present 
were  uplifted  at  the  recitals  of  men  who  had  long  been 
honoured  in  their  tribes. 

As  at  the  dances  the  members  of  allied  families 
were  here  and  there  thrown  together.  In  the  Oglala 
section  the  clan  of  Yellow-Iron  were  grouped  and 
Cloud  Chief,  accepted  suitor  of  Tokala,  was  sitting 
with  them.  The  young  man  had  possibly  never 
shown  to  better  advantage.  Modestly  reclining  upon 
his  robe  he  gave  strict  attention  to  the  recitals  of  his 
elders.  He  seemed  not  to  allow  his  interest  in  the 
maiden  who  sat  near  at  hand  to  interrupt  his  hearing. 
His  hand-clap  and  his  shout  of  approval,  with  that 
of  many  others,  followed  the  boom  of  the  drum  when 
some  brave  and  notable  deed  had  been  recounted. 

Tokala  had  never  been  so  proud  of  her  lover, 
whose  flushed  cheeks  and  shining  eyes  betrayed  his 


218      THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS 

deep  and  enthusiastic  interest  in  the  stirring  recitals 
of  his  elders.  So  passed  some  happy  and  inter- 
esting hours.  Then  an  intruding  presence  was 
thrust  upon  her  clan  group. 

Coming  in  from  the  outer  circle,  winding  his  way 
among  the  sitters,  the  recent  master  of  ceremonies 
dropped  upon  the  ground  within  a  pace  of  Tokala 
Noni.  He  sat  facing  Cloud  Chief  and  within  easy 
speaking  distance.  Covert  glances  of  surprise  passed 
between  the  women  of  the  family ;  for  the  attitude 
and  bearing  of  Catches  Eagles  seemed  of  uncommon 
assurance.  But  they  said  nothing.  They  were  too 
courteous  to  give  evidence  that  an  unwelcome  addi- 
tion had  been  made  to  their  circle. 

The  group  sat  outwardly  unmoved  while  Catches 
Eagles,  at  intervals  in  the  speeches,  offered  comment 
to  those  next  his  elbow. 

It  was  after  Touch-the-Sky,  an  old  warrior  of  the 
Absaroke,  had  paced  the  area  with  stately  tread, 
telling  of  his  fights  against  the  men  who  had  come 
into  his  country  seeking  for  gold,  and  had  acquitted 
himself  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  audience,  that 
Catches  Eagles  spoke  to  Cloud  Chief. 

"  Your  father-in-law,"  he  said,  "  has  been  indeed  a 
brave  soldier,  and  he  has  much  reason  to  feel  proud 
of  the  chief  who  has  married  his  eldest  daughter." 

The  voice  was  that  of  flattering  approval.     But  the 


THE  BITTERNESS  OF  SUCCESS      219 

words  were  succeeded  by  a  silence  that  was  well  nigh 
audible.  Tokala  only  caught  her  breath  in  a  quick 
gasp  and  looked  doubtingly  from  one  to  the  other  of 
the  young  chiefs.  Cloud  Chief  turned  his  face  toward 
her,  gazing  for  a  moment  into  her  truthful  eyes.  In 
the  pale  face  and  startled  look  he  read  her  surprise 
and  dismay,  and  he  said  quietly  and  calmly  : 

"  The  man  is  my  father-in-law  and  he  is  a  brave 
and  good  man." 

Then  his  gaze  met  that  of  Catches  Eagles.  In  the 
gleam  of  triumph  and  of  venom  which  he  saw  there 
he  read  the  object  of  this  intrusion  into  a  family  cir- 
cle. Instantly  his  eyes  were  alight  with  fierce  hostil- 
ity and  the  hand  of  either  sought  his  knife-hilt. 
A  fight  was  imminent,  but  sober  second  thought 
came  in  time  and  with  a  slight  hiss  of  contempt 
Cloud  Chief  sank  upon  his  elbow  and  lay  at  ease 
again. 

Tokala  quietly  arose,  drew  her  blanket  close  about 
her  face  and  shoulders,  passed  out  of  the  crowd  and 
went  to  the  solitude  of  an  empty  lodge. 


XVIII 
A   BROKEN   TRUCE 

THE  Oglalas  were  trailing  down  a  fork  of  the 
Good  Water  river  following  an  old  buffalo 
path  which  skirted  breaks  and  foothills  and 
which  had  been  picked  with  that  instinct  which 
makes  for  easy  travel  among  the  wild.  For  reasons 
which  have  been  told  those  going  to  and  returning 
from  a  sun  dance  moved  without  the  usual  out- 
look for  enemies.     The  going  was  a  gala  occasion. 

Danger  of  surprise  by  a  war  party  or  of  a  stam- 
pede from  pony  stealers  was  hardly  conceivable  to 
the  Oglalas.  All  enemies  who  dared  to  invade  the 
country  of  the  Dakota  had  sent  delegations  to  the 
sun  dance  and  its  truce  was  sacred  to  all  the  moons 
of  good  grass. 

It  was  now  the  season  of  berries  and  women  and 
children  wandered  freely  among  the  timbered 
coulees,  catching  up  with  the  slow  moving  cavalcade 
by  an  occasional  scamper  on  their  ponies. 

Tokala  and  The  Sky  were  of  those  who  fell  behind 
the  movers,  and  they  were  picking  red  raspberries, 
which  on  the  Good  Water  were  famous  for  size  and 

220 


A   BROKEN   TRUCE  221 

flavour.  At  the  mouth  of  a  coulee  they  had  busied 
themselves  till  the  train  had  gone  far  past  and  there 
were  no  longer  sounds  of  loiterers.  In  course  of 
time  The  Sky  remembered  the  necessity  of  preparing 
for  her  good  man's  midday  meal. 

"  Come,  daughter,"  she  said,  "  let  us  be  going. 
Our  people  must  be  far  ahead  and  you  know  we 
have  to  make  a  boiling  for  dinner." 

"  Do  you  go  on,  Ina ;  "  replied  the  girl, "  I  will  come 
soon.  You  know  how  swift  is  my  Spotted  Fox — he 
will  catch  you  quickly.  You  are  much  more  dexter- 
ous than  I,  Ina ;  my  basket  is  not  near  full  yet." 

At  this  The  Sky  lifted  Ota  into  her  travois  and, 
with  a  full  basket,  mounted  and  rode  away. 

Tokala  had  nearly  filled  her  measure  when  her  eye, 
wandering  to  the  open  valley  and  a  fringe  of  timber 
along  the  stream,  caught  the  startled  upward  flight  of 
a  number  of  crows  which  she  had  heard  cawing  for 
some  time.  The  flock  rose  and  scattered,  squalling 
and  flapping  after  the  ridiculous  fashion  of  crows. 
Following  them  with  her  eye  she  saw  plainly  that  a 
rookery  of  young  birds,  just  beginning  to  fly,  had 
been  routed  by  an  intruder. 

"  Some  of  our  boys  have  attacked  the  birds  with 
arrows,"  she  thought ;  yet  a  vague  feeling  of  uneasi- 
ness caused  her  to  mount  and  take  the  trail.  When 
she  came  out  upon  the  level  valley  she  looked  ahead 


222  A  BROKEN  TRUCE 

and  to  right,  left  and  rear,  to  note  if  any  of  the  Ogla- 
las  were  in  sight.  No  person  was  to  be  seen. 
Even  the  dust-cloud  which  hovered  continually  in 
rear  of  the  long  train  had  vanished.  Her  people 
were  far  ahead  and  her  feeling  of  uneasiness  in- 
creased. The  thought  occurred  to  her  that  men  did 
not  hunt  crows  and  that  small  boys  were  not  likely 
to  be  hunting  so  far  in  the  rear  of  the  train.  She 
wished  that  she  had  gone  out  of  the  coulee  up  on  to 
the  prairie  and  so  for  a  time  had  kept  out  of  sight  of 
the  valley. 

Those  mysterious  forces  which  stir  the  intelligence 
of  wild  things  were  crowding  upon  her  brain,  else 
the  emotion  of  fear  could  scarcely  have  followed  the 
flight  of  a  flock  of  squalling  crows.  A  wild-cat,  a 
porcupine,  a  tree  snake  or  a  hovering  eagle  might 
have  caused  their  scattering.  Yet  as  Tokala  rode 
swiftly  forward  her  eyes  were  upon  the  fringes  of 
bush  and  tree  which  followed  the  slow  windings  of  a 
channel  which,  at  that  season,  had  but  a  runlet  of 
water  rippling  among  its  bars.  And  she  scarcely 
felt  surprise,  though  greatly  increased  alarm,  when, 
at  five  or  six  bow-shots  in  her  front,  three  horsemen 
rode  out  of  the  river's  bed  and  immediately  galloped 
toward  the  trail. 

That  these  riders  were  strangers,  in  position  to  cut 
her  off  from  her  people,  a  second  glance  told  her 


A   BROKEN   TRUCE  223 

perfectly.  Apparently  they  were  unaware  of  her 
approach  but  there  was  that  in  their  bearing  which 
warned  her  to  keep  at  a  distance.  She  turned 
abruptly  away  from  the  trail  and  rode  toward  the 
river.  Her  eye  had  noted  a  sweep  of  the  valley 
to  northward  and  this  level  stretch  would  offer 
the  shortest  and  easiest  run  in  overtaking  her  people. 
If  chase  were  to  be  made  her  instinct  was  now  to 
trust  solely  to  the  speed  of  her  pony  rather  than  to 
dodging  among  hills. 

And  the  need  for  action  was  immediate.  She 
had  ridden  but  a  little  way  when  the  strangers 
wheeled  and  came  straight  toward  her,  the  fore- 
most holding  up  his  hand  in  token  of  wishing  to 
make  an  inquiry.  Tokala  was  not  caught  by  the 
artifice.  She  gave  her  pony  the  quirt,  thus  openly 
declaring  her  suspicion.  Seeing  that  finesse  was  in 
vain  the  horsemen  threw  away  pretense,  turned  and 
dashed  also  straight  for  the  river.  They  gave  chase 
parallel  to  the  course  Tokala  rode,  and  the  girl  un- 
derstood their  cunning  purpose.  If  they  might  not 
overtake  her  at  once  they  would,  to  the  last  moment, 
keep  her  going  further  from  the  chance  of  rescue. 

There  was,  too,  no  further  doubt  in  her  mind  of 
the  purpose  of  these  men.  When  the  foremost  had 
come  within  two  bow-shots  Tokala  recognized  Little 
Hand,  son  of  the  Crow  chief  Iron  Face;  and  she 


224  A  BROKEN  TRUCE 

saw  in  him  the  emissary  of  Cloud  Chief.  During 
the  long  march  from  Bear  Buttes  he  and  his  fol- 
lowers had  hovered  in  the  rear  of  the  Oglalas  watch- 
ing for  such  opportunity  as  her  loitering  had 
furnished.  So,  the  great  chief  of  the  Crows  could 
not  rest  upon  her  flat  refusal  to  become  a  second 
wife  but  must  needs  sends  his  young  men  to  capture 
and  compel  submission  !  Fear  vanished,  followed  by 
a  dogged  determination  to  escape  at  all  hazards. 

Her  Spotted  Fox  was  one  of  the  swiftest  of 
Oglala  ponies  and  had  won  many  wagers  for  the 
chief  her  father.  The  Fox  must  save  her  from  these 
violators  of  a  sacred  truce.  His  flight  to  the  river 
was  like  arrow  from  the  bow,  yet  the  Crows  kept  so 
nearly  even  chase  that  a  long  race  was  inevitable. 
Fleet-footed  were  the  mountain  horses  sent  to  take 
her !  She  had  clung  to  her  basket  of  berries  un- 
thinkingly but  dropped  it  on  a  gravel  bar  as,  in 
half-a-dozen  leaps,  her  pony  crossed  the  channel  of 
the  river. 

When  she  saw  her  pursuers  mount  the  bank 
evenly  above  she  wished  that  she  had  taken  to  the 
hills  in  her  rear.  But  it  was  now  too  late.  She 
must  simply  watch  those  Crows  as  the  fleeing  bird 
eyes  a  hawk  in  pursuit.  If  her  pony  should  prove 
less  swift  or  of  less  endurance  than  theirs  she  would 
be  lost.     When  she  had  reached  a  high  plain  above  the 


A  BROKEN  TRUCE  225 

river  valley  the  Crows,  cunningly  strung  out  to 
prevent  a  dodging  rush  to  rearward,  were  still  racing 
her  at  even  speed. 

In  her  front  loomed  the  Hills  of  Moving  Waters, 
a  stretch  of  semi-mountainous  heights  covered  with 
black  pines,  a  sacred  country  wherein  no  Dakota 
carried  his  war-weapons  nor  ever  struck  at  the 
animals  or  birds.  Many  of  those  hills  J  had  never 
been  trodden  by  the  foot  of  man.  Because  of  their 
mysterious  flows  of  hot  and  medicinal  waters,  gifts, 
direct  and  tangible,  from  the  Great  Mystery,  all 
Indians  were  reverent  of  the  ground.  They  only 
visited  its  healing  springs  to  drink  of  the  waters  and 
to  make  offerings  to  the  Most  Mysterious. 

Could  she  reach  the  sacred  hills  and  gain  the  shelter 
of  their  pines  Tokala  felt  that  the  chances  of  escape 
would  be  much  improved.  Even  should  the  Crows 
disregard  sacred  ground  of  the  Wakan  Tanka, 
as    they  had    the    truce     of    the    sun   dance,   she 

1  These  mountains  were  what  we  now  know  as  the  Black  Hills  of 
Dakota.  The  Indian  tribes  surrounding  them  held  all  the  country 
within  their  boundaries  as  sacred  or  mysterious  ground  and  they 
neither  hunted  nor  camped  therein.  The  writer  was  one  of  the  first 
to  reach  these  hills  after  the  incomplete  exploration  of  General 
Custer  in  1874.  Nowhere  in  months  of  camping  and  tramping  did 
I  find  any  evidence  of  Indian  trails,  villages  or  burial  places.  And 
the  permanent  animals  and  birds,  as  the  bear,  the  cougar,  the  black- 
tail  deer,  pine  hen  and  others  were  absolutely  unsophisticated  in  the 
ways  of  men.  They  were  almost  without  fear,  and  the  first  hunters 
of  the  region  found  them  absurdly  easy  of  approach. 


226  A  BROKEN  TRUCE 

would  yet,  if  she  might  get  beyond  their  sight,  have 
the  deep  shelter  of  the  pines  in  which  to  hide. 
Once  in  the  woods  she  could  abandon  her  pony  and 
then — she  was  as  fleet  as  a  young  warrior  and 
lighter  of  foot.  There  would  be  no  trail  which  these 
men  could  follow  with  any  hope  of  success.  And  in 
a  few  hours  many  horsemen  of  the  Oglalas  would  be 
out  looking  for  her. 

She  had  no  blanket,  nothing  to  throw  away.  The 
Fox  was  only  encumbered  by  her  lightly  dressed 
weight  and  the  little,  flat  saddle  which  Indian  women 
use.  She  carefully  estimated  the  distance  to  the 
hills  and  the  time  it  would  take  her  to  reach  the 
shelter  of  their  rocks  and  pines.  The  sun  lacked  a 
hand  of  the  midday  mark  and  before  that  time  she 
would  surely  enter  upon  the  sacred  ground.  An- 
other survey  of  her  pursuers  assured  her  that  they 
were  no  nearer  than  at  the  start.  It  was  a  wily  race 
they  were  making,  keeping  only  between  herself  and 
the  trail  of  the  Oglalas  and  trusting  to  wear  out  her 
pony  or  to  force  her  upon  some  barrier  which  must 
bring  her  within  their  reach. 

She  leaned  forward  upon  the  neck  of  her  pony, 
putting  her  hands  on  either  side  of  the  sleek  withers. 
"  O  Spotted  Fox,"  she  prayed,  "  you  are  very  swift, 
but  there  are  those  in  pursuit  also  exceedingly  fleet. 
Be  wary — do  not  stumble.     Be  strong  of  heart  and 


A  BROKEN  TRUCE  227 

limb  to  save  me.     Let  me  not  be  taken  away  from 
my  people." 

As  though  in  answer  to  her  petition  the  Spotted 
Fox  tossed  his  head  and  snorted,  "  B-r-r-r-m-m-m  !  " 

"  My  Fox ! "  cried  Tokala,  "  you  will  be  swift ! 
Your  feet  shall  be  as  the  wings  of  the  eagle  to  bear 
me  away  from  the  enemy.  I  shall  not  dwell  in  a 
teepee  of  the  hated  Crows — your  speed  shall  over- 
come ! " 

There  were  probably  seven  miles  between  the 
runners  and  the  long  black  range  of  hills,  and  so 
evenly  mated  were  the  horses  of  pursued  and  pur- 
suer that  the  distance  was  nearly  covered  without 
perceptible  alteration  in  their  positions.  Doubtless  a 
half-hour  would  have  measured  the  time  of  the  race. 

The  Crows,  bent  upon  capturing  the  girl  unharmed, 
were  content  for  a  time  to  chase  her  further  and  fur- 
ther away  from  possible  chance  of  rescue.  Ere  long 
they  doubted  not  the  prize  would  fall  into  their 
hands.  When  nearing  the  foot-hills  of  the  sacred 
country  they  awakened  to  the  danger  of  letting  their 
quarry  get  among  the  dense  pine  forests  looming 
ahead.  And  so,  cunningly,  and  by  what  was  in- 
tended to  be  imperceptible  degrees,  they  began  to 
bear  in  toward  the  fleeing  one. 

But  Tokala  was  keenly  on  the  watch  for  this 
move  and,  at  the  first  appearance  of  approach,  she 


228  A  BROKEN   TRUCE 

turned  her  horse's  head  and  fled  diagonally  nearly 
straight  away  from  them.  And  now  the  maiden 
bent  forward,  gently  using  the  quirt,  and  spoke  again 
and  sharply  in  the  ear  of  the  Spotted  Fox. 

"  My  horse !  "  she  urged  in  quick,  magnetic  tones. 
"  My  Fox,  my  swift  footed  one !  Now  !  Now !  Go ! 
Go!    Run!    Run!    Run!" 

And  as  though  a  very  god  of  speed  had  infused 
his  spirit  into  the  cayuse  the  spotted  one  responded. 
He  thrust  forward  his  muzzle  and  stretched  his  length, 
even  as  a  rabbit  does,  along  the  ground.  And 
Tokala,  assured  that  he  would  do  his  best,  lay  low 
upon  his  withers  only  shouting  encouragement.  The 
response  was  nothing  less  than  splendid.  Though 
he  had  covered  at  a  swift  gallop  a  distance  that 
would  have  done  to  the  ground  a  stable-bred  animal 
he  had  by  no  means  taxed  his  endurance. 

Had  not  those  behind  been  mounted  upon  the 
speediest  and  toughest  of  mountain  ponies  the  chase 
would  now  have  left  them  hopelessly  behind.  But 
the  three  in  pursuit  were  among  the  pick  of  ten 
thousand  Crow  ponies  and  they  did  not  fail  in  re- 
sponse to  the  quirt,  cruelly  plied  by  their  yelling 
riders.  These  had  pursued  a  waiting  policy  but  now 
the  quarry  led  straight  away  and  their  racing  blood 
was  roused. 

The  foot-hills  rang  with  yells — hilarious  and  as- 


A  BROKEN  TRUCE  229 

sured  of  victory.  Around  the  points  of  the  hills 
they  swept  as  hounds  in  chase  of  a  fox.  Three 
young  warriors,  intent  upon  doing  service  for  their 
powerful  chieftain,  whipped  their  swift  ponies  to  the 
topmost  effort  of  speed. 

Tokala,  leaning  upon  her  pony's  neck,  kept  an  eye 
alternately  upon  the  rear  and  front.  She  hugged 
the  foot-hills  ever  closer  and  at  length,  seeing  that 
the  Crows  were  not  gaining,  dodged  in  at  the  mouth 
of  a  coulee.  Along  the  bottom  of  a  dry  run  her 
pony,  vying  with  the  red  deer,  carried  her  into  the 
fastnesses.  Up  and  up  they  mounted  into  the 
region  of  pines. 

The  canon  deepened  as  she  advanced  and  branched 
on  either  hand  into  a  net-work  of  gorges,  at  the 
bottom  of  which  were  the  sand-beds  of  torrents 
which  ran  in  the  seasons  of  rain.  Logs,  floodwood, 
stones,  barred  the  way  but  her  panting  pony  took 
them  like  the  mountain  goat  leaping,  scrambling  and 
climbing  but  never  losing  his  feet. 

Up  and  up  they  went  winning  to  the  crests  of  the 
pine-topped  hills.  At  length  Tokala  was  able  to 
halt  a  trembling,  dripping  horse  upon  the  crest  of  a 
ridge.  Here  she  sat  listening  intently  for  some  sec- 
onds. The  heavy  breathing  of  her  horse  and  the 
rustle  of  the  pines  were  the  only  sounds  that  came 
to  her  ears.     She  was  filled  with  elation  at  this  cer- 


230  A  BROKEN  TRUCE 

tain  evidence  that  the  chase,  somewhere  below,  had 
gone  astray. 

She  was  content  to  rest  only  for  the  brief  time 
necessary  to  breathe  her  horse  and  again  set  forward. 
Riding  at  a  walk  she  picked  her  trail  along  the  stony 
crests  and  scarps  of  ridges  where  only  minute  inspec- 
tion could  have  discovered  her  pony's  hoof-prints. 

She  was  very  loath  to  abandon  her  horse  as  had 
been  her  plan  if  closely  pressed.  It  seemed  now  that 
there  would  be  no  need.  To  get  between  the  enemy 
and  the  trail  of  her  people,  with  a  rested  animal,  was 
her  object.  If  she  might  get  but  a  little  start  of 
the  Crows  and  with  a  clear  run  to  the  camp  of 
the  Oglalas  she  would  have  but  little  doubt  of  the 
outcome. 

The  covered  ridge,  which  she  had  last  mounted, 
seemed  to  run  in  the  right  direction  and  she  followed 
for  a  long  way  in  close  cover  of  drooping  pines.  She 
travelled  for  so  great  a  distance,  hearing  nothing  of 
the  Crows,  that  it  seemed  impossible  they  should 
ever  come  up  with  her.  For  they  would  need  to  dis- 
mount and  follow  slowly  the  tracks  of  her  pony,  if 
indeed  they  would  be  able  to  follow  them  at  all. 

For  a  further  time  she  kept  on,  shifting  her  course 
from  one  rock  crown  to  another.  Then  she  came 
upon  a  plateau  where  tall  pines  alternated  with  green 
openings,  where  the  earth  was  of  brilliant  red  paint 


A  BROKEN  TRUCE  231 

and  where  tall  grasses  and  purple  and  yellow  flowers 
grew  in  profusion.  Never  had  Tokala  seen  a  spot 
so  beautiful.  Her  fears  were  well  nigh  forgotten, 
caution  as  to  blinding  her  trail  quite  laid  aside,  as 
she  rode  among  the  whispering  pines  or  out  upon 
the  grass  plats  where  flowers  seemed  to  turn  their 
faces  up  to  greet  her.  She  began  to  note  also  that 
birds  sat  upon  the  limbs  of  trees  or  hopped  in  the 
grass  almost  within  arm's  reach  as  she  passed. 
Presently  she  paused  to  listen  again.  As  before 
there  were  no  sounds  of  those  in  chase.  She  dis- 
mounted to  allow  her  horse  to  rest,  while  her  ears 
should  be  on  the  alert. 

She  dropped  the  pony's  bridle  over  his  head  and 
wandered  to  a  little  distance,  admiring  flowers  which 
she  had  no  thought  of  picking.  She  had  never 
cared  for  flowers  in  the  hand ;  they  died  so  quickly, 
thus  losing  all  their  beauty.  Presently,  as  she  passed 
leisurely  under  the  outermost  boughs  of  a  pine,  a 
large  bird  startled  her  by  whirring  down  from  the 
tree-tops  and  alighting  at  her  feet.  It  was  Siyo 
Wazi  the  pine  grouse  and  he  strutted  at  her  feet  ab- 
solutely unafraid. 

"  K-r-r-o-o-o-krroo — kroo-eett !  "  said  Siyo  Wazi 
and  he  roughed  his  feathers  and  cocked  an  eye  at 
her.  He  seemed  wonderfully  friendly  and  curious 
and  Tokala  was  delighted  with  what  seemed  an  ex- 


232  A  BROKEN  TRUCE 

hibition  of  affectionate  interest.  She  was  in  some 
doubt  whether  it  might  be  that  her  skirt  of  red 
trader's  cloth  had  attracted  the  bird.  And  again  she 
considered  Siyo  Wazi  as  wholly  interested  in  herself 
and  was  happy  in  this  belief. 

"  O  Siyo  Wazi ! "  she  exclaimed,  "  do  you  truly 
wish  to  be  my  friend  ?  "  She  stood  still  looking  down 
at  the  bird  which  strutted,  roughing  its  feathers  and 
"  krooing "  within  a  pace  of  her.  "  Is  it  that  you 
have  a  warning  to  utter  or  do  you  inform  me  of  a 
peace  ?  " 

Suddenly  as  she  gazed  upon  the  bird  there  came 
over  her  the  conviction  that  indeed  this  was  the 
Sacred  Country,  and  that  no  harm  could  come  to 
her  within  the  confines  of  these  silent  pine-hills. 
This  was  why  she  had  heard  no  sound  of  the  enemy ! 
When  she  had  gained  the  shelter  of  the  Mini-skan- 
skan  the  Crows  had  not  dared  to  follow  her.  So  it 
was  that  she  might  rove  at  will  among  the  sacred 
pines.     A  great  peace  filled  her  soul. 

As  if  to  confirm  what  Siyo  Wazi  had  told  her  there 
came  out  of  the  near-by  covert  a  fawn  which  stood 
at  gaze  at  the  distance  of  five  steps,  its  head  lifted, 
its  nostrils  slightly  dilated,  and  its  great  dark  eyes 
fixed  upon  the  upright  walker  with  infinite  and  in- 
nocent curiosity.  It  was  a  most  beautiful  creature,  a 
yearling  doe,  which  had  met  with  few  alarms  and 


A  BROKEN  TRUCE  233 

knew  not  the  wickedness  of  the  eaters  of  flesh.  Very 
possibly  no  image  of  fear  had  ever  been  projected 
into  its  consciousness  and  so  it  stood,  and  finally  ap- 
proached, gently  sniffing  the  air  and  tossing  its  head 
in  a  coquettish  fashion.  The  little  doe  came  on  un- 
til Tokala,  as  in  a  delightful  dream,  softly  put  forth 
her  hand  and  stroked  the  face  of  the  innocent  one. 

At  length  the  fawn,  growing  in  confidence,  rubbed 
against  her  and  raised  its  head  to  be  caressed  and 
fondled.  Tokala  had  met  with  no  like  experience 
and  the  influence  of  this  primeval  wilderness  was 
strong  upon  her.  She  was  now  sure  that  the  good 
spirits  were  hovering  above  and  a  calm  security  en- 
veloped her  soul.  Even  the  Crows  must  respect  the 
powers  ruling  here.  These  had  left  off  pursuit  at  the 
edge  of  the  Sacred  Country. 

After  the  fawn  had  left  her,  flashing  away  among 
the  bush,  she  sat,  for  a  long  time,  allowing  her  horse 
to  crop  the  rich  grasses.  When  certain  that  the 
Fox  could  travel  without  fatigue  she  mounted  and 
rode  in  search  of  water. 

This  was  found  at  the  foot  of  a  deep  ravine  and 
she  again  dismounted  and  turned  her  animal  loose. 
It  was  after  midday  and  Tokala,  searching  among 
the  rich  herbage,  unearthed  roots  which  were  good 
to  eat.  Scaling  near  heights  she  found  an  abun- 
dance of  red  raspberries  and,  after  enough  of   fruit, 


234  A  BROKEN  TRUCE 

stretched  her  tired  body  upon  the  pine  needles  and 
slept. 

Her  awakening  was  a  rude  one.  Something — the 
odour  of  tobacco  perhaps,  aroused  her.  She  lifted 
her  eyes  to  see  three  young  Indians  seated  about  her 
in  most  friendly  fashion. 

Little  Hand  sat  but  two  or  three  paces  away  smok- 
ing his  pipe  and  looking  at  her  most  amicably.  Her 
fears  were  lulled  by  this  friendly  attitude,  yet  she 
knew  that  she  was  irretrievably  a  prisoner,  that  the 
Crows  had  come  upon  her  stealthily  and  had  no 
thought  of  allowing  her  to  escape. 

She  cast  her  eyes  first  upon  one  then  the  other  of 
pleasant  but  unrelenting  faces.  Her  captors  were 
mere  youths  no  older  than  herself.  Their  faces  were 
open  and  honest  and  she  felt  no  fear  of  them.  In- 
deed the  three  had  been  her  near  neighbours  during 
the  summer. 

At  length  she  addressed  Little  Hand  who  appar- 
ently was  the  leader.  Her  tone  was  serious  and  re- 
proving but  gave  no  sign  of  the  despair  at  her  heart. 

"  Why  have  you  broken  the  peace  of  the  sun 
dance,  and  how  dared  you  come  into  the  Sacred 
Country  seeking  a  captive  ?  " 

"  You  should  remember,"  answered  Little  Hand,  in 
the  trade  tongue  which  Tokala  had  used,  "  that  you 
had  promised  to  dwell  with  us  in  the  teepee  of  our 


A  BROKEN  TRUCE  235 

great  chief.  We  do  no  violation  in  seeking  our  own. 
It  is  the  will  of  the  Most  Mysterious.  If  this  be  not 
enough,  then  your  big  man,  Catches  Eagles,  who  was 
chief  of  us  all  during  the  sun  dance,  counselled  us  to 
come  after  you  and  carry  you  to  the  Crow  country, 
that  no  Dakota  pledge  should  be  broken.  You 
know  that  we  must  all  keep  the  promises  made  at  such 
a  time.  I  say  again  it  is  the  will  of  the  Most 
Mysterious." 

And  against  this  cunning  yet  truthful  defense 
Tokala  knew  that  argument  would  be  too  vain  for 
thought.  But  some  matters  were  swiftly  revolved  in 
her  mind.  That  the  great  chief  of  the  Crows  should 
feel  justification  in  sending  his  men  to  capture  her  she 
could  admit.  It  might  be  that  she  had  done  wrong 
from  his  point  of  view,  though  not  from  her  own. 
But  Catches  Eagles  !  She  had  no  doubt  that  Little 
Hand  had  told  her  the  truth  and  that  the  wily  Sans 
Arc  had  counselled  the  performance  of  what  had 
been  done.  But  how  could  one  so  wise  and  great  as 
Cloud  Chief  have  been  deceived  by  his  own  bitterest 
enemy  ? 

There  would  be  swift  rescue  and  Catches  Eagles, 
whom  she  loathed,  would  carry  her  back  to  the  Og- 
lalas  and  there  set  up  a  claim  which,  since  her  refusal 
to  marry  the  Crow  chief,  had  already  been  too  well 
urged.     Many  of  her  relatives  had  declared  that  she 


236  A  BROKEN   TRUCE 

had  now  no  reason  to  refuse  one  so  well  favoured  of  the 
Great  Mystery.  It  was  high  time  she  were  married, 
they  said,  and  to  longer  humour  her  would  be  to  foster 
a  perverse  and  stubborn  creature  whom  it  were  bet- 
ter to  discipline  in  some  rigorous  manner.  Tokala 
reached  the  swift  conclusion  that  she  would  rather 
be  carried  into  the  Crow  country  than  be  recaptured 
by  Catches  Eagles  or  his  followers.  She  preferred  to 
make  her  escape  unaided  or  to  meet  death  in  the  at- 
tempt. Having  revolved  the  matter  she  said  to  her 
captors : 

"  You  are  but  young  warriors  and  you  do  not 
know  the  wiles  of  that  Sans  Arc.  He  does  not  in- 
deed intend  that  you  shall  carry  me  to  your  country 
but  will  be  after  you  and  catch  up  with  you  quickly. 
Your  scalps  will  surely  hang  at  his  belt." 

The  youngsters  laughed  heartily.  They  were  more 
than  pleased  at  Tokala's  evident  reluctance  to  be  re- 
taken by  Catches  Eagles.  Perhaps  she  had  repented 
her  action  after  the  sun  dance  and  was  now  glad  that 
their  great  chief  had  taken  such  pains  to  show  his 
preference.  Indeed  how  could  it  be  otherwise  ?  So 
they  laughed  joyously. 

"  Do  not  fear  for  us,"  said  Little  Hand,  "  and  do 
not  think  that  your  big  Sans  Arc  is  the  shrewdest 
man  in  the  world  !  If  you  do  you  will  soon  see  that 
you  have  been  mistaken.     He  has  not  deceived  us 


A  BROKEN  TRUCE  237 

although  we  let  him  think  so.  He  will  not  catch  us. 
Are  not  the  Absaroke  ponies  ever  the  swiftest  ?  " 

"  You  did  not  prove  it  in  chasing  me,"  said  Tokala 
calmly,  "  nor  could  you  ever  have  come  up  with  my 
Spotted  Fox  but  that  I  foolishly  thought  myself  safe 
upon  this  sacred  ground." 

At  this  the  young  men's  faces  reddened,  but  they 
laughed  it  off  and  Little  Hand  brought  forth  from  a 
parfleche  some  dried  pemmican. 

"  Come,"  he  said, "  let  us  eat  and  be  off." 


XIX 
IN   CLOUD    CHIEF'S   LODGE 

WHEN  they  reached  the  Crow  village,  after 
ten  days  of  hard  riding,  the  young  men 
had  made  good  their  boast  that  the  Sioux 
should  not  overtake  them.  Weary  and  sore  from 
long  and  hard  riding  Tokala  was  set  down  at  the 
teepee  of  Cloud  Chief,  where  she  was  received  in  no 
very  gracious  manner  by  Mountain  Lamb.  This 
young  woman  threw  open  the  tiyopa  ungraciously 
and  said  to  the  weary  wayfarer : 

"  Come  in.  I  suppose  that  you  are  the  Sioux  girl 
whom  my  husband  intends  to  take  to  wife." 

Without  answering  Tokala  stepped  within  the 
lodge.  There  was  nothing  else  for  her  to  do.  A 
wearied  glance  showed  her  an  apartment  as  luxurious 
and  well  appointed  as  an  Indian  woman  could  have 
wished.  The  lodge  was  large  and  well  furnished, 
hung  with  many  fine  ornaments  and  its  floor  thickly 
laid  with  rugs  and  mats. 

The  girl  stood  for  a  moment,  uncertain  of  what  she 
ought  to  do  and  then,  overcome  by  a  sudden  home- 
sickness, sank  upon  a  bear-skin  and  buried  her  face 

238 


IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE    239 

in  her  hands.  She  had  borne  well  a  long  and  tire- 
some journey,  uncomplaining  of  the  hard  and  strenu- 
ous march  which  had  landed  her  in  the  teepee  of  the 
alien  chief.  That  he  was  not  at  hand  to  greet  her 
was  a  distinct  relief;  for  she  felt  that  she  could  not 
have  borne  his  immediate  appearance.  Ignoring  the 
presence  of  his  wife  she  gave  vent  to  her  feelings  and 
wept  unrestrainedly. 

Mountain  Lamb,  when  she  had  recovered  from  her 
astonishment,  sat  down  and  looked  at  her,  warming 
toward  the  stricken  one,  the  while  she  amused  a 
small  child  which  seemed  inclined  to  whimper  in 
sympathy  with  the  stranger. 

It  is  simple  truth  to  say  Tokala's  coming  had  been 
a  complete  surprise  to  the  wife  of  Cloud  Chief. 
Mountain  Lamb  had  not  heard  of  such  a  person 
until,  briefly  before  the  arrival,  Little  Hand  had  rid- 
den to  her  teepee  door  to  bid  her  make  ready  for  a 
Sioux  maiden — her  husband's  new  wife.  At  first 
anger  had  taken  possession  of  her  and  she  had  de- 
clared that  no  Dakota  girl  should  be  admitted  to  her 
lodge.  Then,  as  she  listened  to  the  story  of  Tokala's 
capture,  she  no  longer  doubted  that  her  husband — 
though  he  was  now  away  on  a  buffalo  hunt — had  sent 
these  young  men  to  take  the  maiden  ;  and  curiosity, 
for  the  moment,  overcame  all  other  emotions. 

If  it  were  her  husband's  will  to  take  another  wife 


240    IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE 

it  was  but  natural  that  he  should  do  so  in  his  own 
way.  She  had  expected  that  some  time  so  great  and 
successful  a  chief  would  wish  to  add  to  his  family  in 
this  way.  But  she  had  a  sister,  Wings  of  Morning, 
whom  she  had  expected  would  take  the  place  of  sec- 
ond wife.  For  this  event  she  had  been  quite  pre- 
pared and  would  have  welcomed  the  sister  into  her 
lodge.  Wings  of  Morning  was  but  young  yet,  hav- 
ing seen  barely  fourteen  winters  and  perhaps  yet  the 
big  chief,  her  husband,  would  take  her  to  wife. 

At  any  rate,  as  the  first  wife,  Mountain  Lamb 
considered  that  she  was  chief  of  the  household.  It 
would  be  her  place  to  rule  another  wife  and  if  it 
were  a  Sioux  so  much  the  more  would  she  relish  her 
authority.  This  captive  girl  should  be  her  slave. 
She  would  be  waited  upon,  she  and  her  child.  The 
Sioux  wife  should  cut  all  the  wood,  bring  the  water, 
do  the  heavy  work  in  cutting  up  the  buffaloes  and  in 
fleshing  and  tanning  skins. 

On  the  whole,  when  she  had  fully  considered  the 
matter,  she  was  not  greatly  displeased  with  this  ac- 
cession to  her  household.  And  when  she  finally 
realized  that  Tokala  had  not  come  to  her  chief  will- 
ingly she  warmed  to  her  briefly  with  a  genuine  Indian 
woman's  kindliness. 

When  the  weary  girl  had  sobbed  out  her  grief, 
Mountain  Lamb  arose  and  went  softly  about  pre- 


IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE  241 

paring  a  meal.  She  put  meat  in  a  kettle  with 
water  and  sweet  roots  to  make  a  palatable  soup. 
She  was  a  long  time  getting  the  meal,  thus  giving 
her  enforced  guest  time  to  recover.  Voice  and  action 
were  kindly  as  she  stopped  before  the  prostrate  girl 
and  bade  her  get  up  and  eat. 

For  a  moment  or  two  Tokala  appeared  not  to  hear 
and  then  her  native  courtesy  asserted  itself  and  she 
arose,  having  secretly  wiped  her  eyes.  She  sat  down  at 
dinner  with  no  comment  whatever  and  the  meal  was 
finished  in  silence.  A  small  one-year-old,  tilted  upon 
his  cradle-board  within  easy  reach,  shared  in  the  soup. 
It  was  after  the  kettle  and  dishes  had  been  put  away 
that  silence  was  broken  between  the  women. 

Tokala  had  taken  her  seat  in  the  rear  of  the  lodge 
and  had  had  time  to  take  a  survey  of  her  surround- 
ings. Had  she  come  to  this  teepee  to  be  its  sole 
mistress  or  its  first  one  she  could  not  have  asked  for 
anything  more.  Evidently  the  great  chief  of  the 
Crows  was  wealthy  and  his  wife  had  everything  in 
her  lodge  that  one  could  wish,  besides  many  things 
which  were  purely  ornamental.  There  were  bunks 
for  the  bedding,  with  fine  saddles  and  blankets  un- 
derneath, and  there  were  numbers  of  curious  utensils 
which  were  strange  to  the  Sioux  girl,  and  there  were 
carved  turtle-shell  bows  and  brass  pots  and  spoons  as 
fine  as  any  in  her  own  country.     She  had  never  seen 


242    IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE 

such  beautiful  bear-skin  rugs,  nor  woven-grass  mats 
stained  and  coloured  in  so  many  brilliant  hues. 

The  walls,  too,  were  skirted  with  such  material  as 
delights  a  tasteful  housewife.  Beaded  bags  and  par- 
fleches,  hanks  of  sinews,  trader's  cloth,  thread  and 
ribbons,  strings  of  gay  beads,  besides  numerous  orna- 
mental skins  of  small  animals  and  wings  of  scarlet 
birds.  All  this  would  have  given  her  happiness  as 
mistress  of  a  household ;  but  these  things  had  been 
provided  for  or  by  another  and  she  could  never  have 
any  delight  in  them. 

Tokala  was  in  momentary  dread  of  the  chief's 
coming.  Her  relief  was  very  great  when  presently 
Mountain  Lamb  seated  herself  opposite,  and,  with 
some  ornamental  work  in  hand,  made  the  casual  re- 
mark: 

"  My  husband  is  at  the  buffalo  hunting.  They 
have  gone  north  of  the  Muddy  River  near  to  the 
Great  Falls  and  I  do  not  expect  him  to  return 
for  one  moon  yet  and  perhaps  he  may  be  gone  two 
moons.  It  is  said  that  the  Black-feet  are  likely  to  be 
encountered.  We  indeed  may  never  see  those  who 
have  gone  out  again." 

She  said  this  calmly  and  dispassionately  as  though 
the  loss  of  one's  husband  were  a  casual  event  to  be 
taken  with  philosophy. 

Tokala's  heart  bounded  joyfully,  not  because  of 


IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE  243 

the  woman's  apparent  apathy  toward  her  husband 
but  because  of  the  long  respite  to  herself  which 
Cloud  Chief's  absence  promised.  Evidently  he  had 
wished  her  to  become  wonted  to  her  new  home 
before  he  should  thrust  his  unwelcome  presence  upon 
her.  So  much  the  more  chance  there  would  be  of 
escape  from  a  slave's  life.  Quickly  in  mind  and  soul 
were  her  moods  adjusted  to  meet  the  needs  of  the 
occasion.  It  would  be  necessary  to  be  cunning.  She 
would  appear  to  accept  her  position  willingly  and  to  be 
looking  forward  to  the  return  of  her  prospective  hus- 
band, and  in  the  meantime,  when  she  had  convinced 
them  all  of  her  sincerity,  she  would  slip  out  of  this 
hated  village  and  away  to  the  mountains.  She 
framed  her  first  sentence  to  this  end. 

"  Since  our  great  chief  is  to  be  gone  so  long 
away,"  she  said,  "  doubtless  he  provided  a  lodge  for 
me  also  ?  He  must  know  that  I  should  have  a  teepee 
to  myself.  I  know  that  you  will  bear  with  me  for 
crying  like  a  child  when  I  was  brought  into  your 
lodge  for  I  was  weary  and  had  been  brought  a  long 
way  from  my  own  people  whom  I  never  expect  to 
see  again." 

The  face  of  The  Mountain  Lamb  grew  cold  and 
she  studied  the  work  in  her  hand  intently  for  a  mo- 
ment ;  then  she  spoke : 

"  The  great  chief  of  the  Absaroke,"  she  said, "  men- 


244    IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE 

tioned  nothing  to  me  about  taking  another  wife.  I 
did  not  know  of  you  until  Little  Hand  came  to  the 
lodge  this  morning." 

Her  reply  surprised  and  elated  Tokala  and  swiftly 
the  girl  recalled  things  which  heretofore  had  not 
pressed  upon  her  mind  as  significant.  In  various 
ways  she  had  questioned  her  captors  about  Cloud 
Chief's  intent,  as  to  her  immediate  disposal  on  reach- 
ing the  Crow  village,  and  they  had  returned  evasive 
answers.  Was  it  possible  that  Cloud  Chief  was  not 
responsible  for  her  capture  ?  The  question  filled  her 
mind  with  growing  conviction  and  delight.  Why, 
Cloud  Chief  had  never  listened  to  the  counsel  of  the 
Sans  Arc  !  And  could  so  wise  a  chief  have  trusted  so 
important  an  errand  to  three  mere  boys?  True 
these  had  succeeded — but,  by  the  merest  accident ! 

And  now,  away  on  the  buffalo  hunt  when  he  should 
have  been  awaiting  her  !  She  had  indeed  been  fool- 
ish to  believe  those  youths.  Cloud  Chief's  wife  had 
evidently  spoken  the  truth.  She  had  known  nothing 
of  such  intention  on  his  part.  The  young  men 
who  had  taken  her  had  unquestionably  done  so  by 
the  suggestion  of  Catches  Eagles  and  in  the  hope  to 
please  their  great  chief  and  gain  a  reward.  As  the 
evidence  piled  up  in  her  mind  Tokala 's  elation  in- 
creased. Very  quickly  she  was  satisfied  that  both 
her  former  lover  and  herself  were  in  false  positions. 


IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE  245 

Even  yet  Cloud  Chief  might  not  wish  her  to  dwell 
with  him  without  her  consent.  This  conclusion  won 
for  the  Crow  chief  complete  exoneration  in  Tokala's 
mind.  Yet  she  swiftly  concluded  that  she  did  not 
wish  to  wait  in  the  village  until  his  return.  The 
temptation  to  retain  her  might  prove  too  great.  She 
was  homesick  for  her  people  and  she  would  get  away 
at  the  earliest  possible  moment. 

All  this  was  swiftly  revolved  in  her  mind  as  she 
sat  quietly  studying  the  averted  face  of  Mountain 
Lamb. 

"  Then  there  is  no  teepee  for  me  ?  "  she  queried  at 
length. 

"  I  know  of  none,"  responded  the  Crow  woman 
coldly. 

The  Sioux  girl  was  on  the  wrong  tack  and  she 
veered  quickly.  Her  mind  was  occupied  with  the 
cunning,  unreasoned  motives  of  an  Indian  woman. 
She  was  among  the  enemy  and  she  would  do  any- 
thing, be  anything,  which  might  not  pollute  the  body, 
for  the  gaining  of  her  purpose.  So  she  changed  her 
note. 

"  Since  the  great  chief  of  the  Crows,"  she  said, 
"has  not  cared  enough  to  build  a  lodge  for  a  captured 
maiden,  doubtless  he  will  choose  to  send  me  home 
again,  for  I  will  not  dwell  in  the  teepee  of  another 
woman." 


246  IN  CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE 

At  this  the  face  of  Mountain  Lamb  lighted  and 
her  manner  grew  almost  genial  as  she  replied, 
u  Doubtless  my  husband  did  not  expect  such  very- 
young  warriors  to  succeed  in  their  errand.  They  do 
not  often  accomplish  much — such  young  fellows  as 
Little  Hand  and  the  sons  of  Talking  Bird.  Very 
likely  my  husband  will  prepare  a  lodge  for  you  when 
he  returns." 

Conversation  was  now  interrupted  by  the  appear- 
ance of  a  third  party.  The  folds  of  the  tiyopa  were 
softly  pushed  aside  and  a  young  girl,  whom  Tokala 
well  remembered  at  the  sun  dance,  entered.  Ap- 
pearing to  be  much  agitated  the  maiden  came 
slowly  forward.  Her  face  was  flushed  and  her  eyes 
shone  with  a  strange  light,  but  she  did  not  appear  to 
be  unfriendly.  She  dropped  upon  a  mat  presently, 
slightly  behind  Mountain  Lamb,  and  looked  so 
steadily  in  Tokala's  face  that  the  Sioux  girl's  eyes 
drooped  before  the  intensity  of  her  gaze.  That 
this  girl  was  sister  to  Mountain  Lamb  Tokala  now 
knew  perfectly,  although  she  had  not  learned  her 
name.  The  resemblance  between  the  two  was  strik- 
ing-except  that  the  young  girl  was  much  finer  looking 
than  her  sister. 

After  some  minutes  of  silence  the  newcomer 
spoke  in  her  Crow  tongue  and  the  wife  of  Cloud 
Chief  answered  briefly  and  then  to  Tokala,  using  the 


IN   CLOUD  CHIEF'S  LODGE    247 

trade  tongue  and  the  sign  language,  which  had  en- 
abled them  to  converse,  she  said : 

"  This  is  my  sister,  Wings  of  Morning,  whom  I 
had  expected  to  dwell  in  my  teepee." 

The  young  girl  blushed  deeply  at  these  words  and 
made  as  if  she  would  arise  but  the  sister  put  out  a 
hand  and  restrained  her.  "  Stay,"  she  said,  "  this  is 
a  Sioux  girl  whom  my  husband  has  sent  for  to  dwell 
in  my  teepee.  He  should  have  told  us  about  this 
but  we  must  not  lack  in  courtesy.  I  understand  the 
Sioux  does  not  come  willingly  but  has  been  taken  as 
a  captive." 

And  it  was  then  that  the  pent-up  feelings  of  Wings 
of  Morning  found  expression. 

"  Sister,"  she  said  eagerly,  "  I  know  this  girl. 
She  is  Tokala  Noni,  daughter  of  the  great  Sioux 
chief,  Yellow-Iron,  and  she  would  rather  have  died 
than  come  to  our  village  to  live.  Is  it  not  so  ?  "  she 
asked  eagerly.  And  Tokala,  the  tears  suddenly  fill- 
ing her  eyes,  could  only  nod  assent.  This  genuine 
emotion  softened  what  of  hardness  there  was  left  in 
the  heart  of  Mountain  Lamb  and  she  looked  with 
great  kindness  and  sympathy  upon  Tokala. 


XX 

WINGS   OF   MORNING 

THE  days  passed  heavily  with  Tokala.  She 
took  her  place  quietly  and  helpfully  in  the 
teepee  of  Mountain  Lamb.  When  work 
was  required  she  did  it  with  seeming  cheerfulness. 
There  was  not  a  great  deal  to  do  at  this  season,  there 
being  but  three  in  the  teepee.  The  hunter  of  the 
household  had  left  his  family  provided  with  meat. 
Mountain  Lamb  seemed  quite  content  that  Tokala 
should  bring  wood  and  water  and  cook  the  meals. 
She  spent  much  of  her  time  gossiping  and  visiting 
with  her  neighbours  and,  for  all  her  watchfulness, 
Tokala  might  have  escaped  time  and  again. 

The  position  of  the  village  was  such,  and  the  eyes 
of  the  dwellers  were  too  keen,  to  permit  the  thought 
of  escape  in  daylight — the  only  time  Tokala  was 
allowed  outside  the  lodge.  The  Crow  town  had  its 
teepees  aligned  upon  the  bank  of  a  mountain  stream 
skirted  by  fringes  of  timber  and  willows,  which 
furnished  some  shelter  and  plenty  of  wood  but  no 
hiding-places.  On  either  side  of  the  river  was  a  flat 
valley  of  grass-land  extending  for  many  bow-shots, 
as  level  as   a  teepee  floor.     And  beyond  loomed 

248 


WINGS  OF  MORNING  249 

great,  barren  heights  upon  whose  near  scarps  one 
might  note  the  progress  of  a  rabbit.  Plainly  there 
was  no  possible  chance  of  escape  in  daylight.  Al- 
though, when  she  went  to  the  willow  patches  for 
wood  or  to  the  river  for  water,  Tokala  was  not  made 
aware  of  open  surveillance,  she  was,  nevertheless, 
conscious  that  curious  or  suspicious  eyes  had  fol- 
lowed her  movements  and  that  an  attempt  to  cross 
the  valley  would  simply  betray  her  desire  to  escape. 

So  she  possessed  her  soul  in  patience  and  trampled 
upon  a  homesick  longing  which  would  have  betrayed 
her  unrest.  Mountain  Lamb,  while  not  actually  un- 
kind to  her,  discovered  a  growing  coldness  as  the 
days  passed  and  a  desire  to  spend  her  time  in  other 
company  than  that  of  the  Sioux  girl.  At  times, 
when  it  seemed  to  Tokala  that  she  was  doing  her 
best  to  please  and  to  make  herself  useful,  the  wife  of 
Cloud  Chief  would  lay  commands  upon  her,  sharply 
ordering  her  to  attend  to  other  work,  and  then 
would  take  her  child  and  go  to  the  teepee  of  a 
neighbour. 

Tokala  was  at  a  loss  to  account  for  these  outbursts 
of  petulancy  which  grew  upon  the  mistress  of  the 
lodge  and  were  so  unlike  her  earlier  behaviour.  Yet 
wisdom  soon  came  to  her  through  her  intimacy  with 
Wings  of  Morning.  Between  Tokala  and  this 
young   girl   there   was    daily    comradeship.     Cloud 


250  WINGS  OF  MORNING 

Chief's  name  was  never  mentioned  between  them. 
They  were  simply  girl  friends  and  Tokala,  always 
of  a  youthful  spirit,  was  not  less  girlish  in  her  likings 
than  the  young  Crow,  who  had  developed  wisdom 
quite  beyond  her  years.  Wings  of  Morning  was  a 
sort  of  foster-mother  to  numerous  small  boys  and 
girls  of  her  clan  who  called  her  "  Aunt  Wings." 

Of  a  dozen  or  more  tiny  folk,  nearly  related  to 
her,  there  was  usually  one  to  lay  demand  upon  her 
spare  moments,  with  a  leaky  doll  to  be  stuffed  and 
sewed  up,  a  complete  new  mannikin  of  buckskin  to 
be  dressed ;  or  there  was  a  little  warrior  with  a 
broken  bow-string,  an  arrow  with  head  to  be  painted 
in  a  wonderful  fashion,  or  wanting  a  new  whizzing- 
stick — always  something  for  the  clever  Aunt  Wings 
to  do  if  she  would.  And  seldom  did  a  little  one  ask 
in  vain. 

Tokala  found  time  to  pass  most  happily  when  she 
could  assist  the  youthful  aunt  in  meeting  such  needs. 
She,  also,  was  expert  in  making  and  mending  the 
toys  of  children  and  like  Aunt  Wings  had  much  to 
do  of  it  at  home.  Tokala's  dolls  and  doll-dresses 
were  of  the  highest  art  of  their  kind.  In  a  brief 
time  this  was  discovered  by  the  Crow  youngsters. 
There  was  a  clamour  for  new  dolls  and  the  friends 
shared  in  the  pleasant  labour  of  catering  to  the  needs 
of  naked  and  hilarious  tots. 


WINGS  OF  MORNING  251 

It  was  when  she  looked  upon  Tokala  at  this  la- 
bour that  Mountain  Lamb  seemed  to  grow  tired  of 
her  teepee  and,  making  some  disagreeable  remark, 
would  take  her  own  infant  and  go  off  for  a  half- 
day's  gossip  with  neighbours.  Tokala  had,  for  half 
a  moon,  been  an  inmate  of  her  teepee  and  had  be- 
come a  favourite,  not  only  among  little  folk  but  with 
many  of  the  grown  people  of  the  village,  when 
Mountain  Lamb  flounced  out  of  the  lodge  one 
morning  in  a  particularly  disagreeable  mood. 
Tokala  believed  the  woman  would  have  beaten  her 
had  she  dared  and  she  was  feeling  wretchedly  at  her 
inability  to  please  when  Wings  of  Morning  came  in, 
her  fresh  and  pretty  face  aglow  with  youth  and  good 
humour.  Already  Tokala  had  learned  enough  of 
Crow  words  to  converse  with  her  friend. 

"  I  do  not  know,"  she  said  presently,  "  what  I  have 
done  to  displease  your  sister,  but  she  is  often  angry 
with  me  of  late.  Tell  me  if  you  can  what  is  the 
matter ;  for  I  wish  to  be  her  friend  and  to  dwell  here 
comfortably  so  long  as  I  must  stay." 

The  young  girl  had  taken  a  seat  and  was  at  work 
for  a  small  one  who  had  come  in  clinging  to  her 
skirt.  She  sat  in  thoughtful  silence  for  some  minutes. 
"  Run  out  now,  Penana,"  she  said  to  the  child,  "  and 
come  back  after  a  while  when  I  have  finished  your 
cradle-board." 


252  WINGS  OF  MORNING 

"  These  little  folk  have  such  acute  ears,"  she  ex- 
plained to  Tokala,  when  the  youngster  had  vanished. 
"  Speaking  of  my  sister  I  think  she  is  merely  foresee- 
ing what  will  happen  when  her  husband  returns. 
You  will  be  his  favourite  wife — every  one  says  so — 
because  you  are  of  his  own  people  and  because  he 
has  always  wanted  to  marry  you  and — because  of 
other  reasons.     I  think  that  is  all." 

Tokala  thought  that — if  true — this  was  enough 
and,  as  there  seemed  nothing  she  could  say  to  help 
the  matter,  she  remained  silent  and  the  conversation 
shifted  into  less  embarrassing  channels.  So,  until  the 
midday  meal,  the  two  talked  and  worked  for  small 
folk  who  trooped  in  upon  them  in  relays  and  then, 
after  the  meal,  Wings  of  Morning  stayed  on. 

Mountain  Lamb  did  not  return  until  Wi,  the  sun, 
was  low  in  the  west.  Then,  as  the  day  was  very 
warm,  she  and  Tokala  sat  outside  of  the  lodge.  Most 
of  the  teepees  had  their  bottoms  rolled  up  and  people 
were  lolling  on  their  blankets  or  lazily  gossiping. 
Mountain  Lamb  seemed  in  better  humour  than  she 
had  been  for  some  days,  though  there  was  no  apparent 
reason  for  the  change  of  mood.  Toward  sunset, 
when  it  had  grown  somewhat  cooler,  the  tattoo  of  a 
drum  was  heard  and  the  folk  roused  and  pricked 
their  ears,  supposing  that  some  of  the  young  men 
were  about  to  start  dancing. 


WINGS  OF  MORNING  253 

Soon,  however,  it  appeared  that  the  drumming 
was  at  the  teepee  of  their  great  mystery  man  High 
Bear.  It  ceased  presently  and  the  mystery  man  came 
forth  and  began  to  parade  back  and  forth  among 
the  teepees,  after  the  manner  of  his  kind.  Tokala 
had  seen  this  Wakan  man  of  the  Crows  many  times, 
but  never  in  such  splendid  array  as  he  had  donned 
for  this  occasion.  He  seemed  not  only  to  be  proudly 
posing  but  engaged  in  performance  of  some  rite  of  an 

occult  nature. 

As  he  strode  to  and  fro  he  sang  a  chant  in  words 
of  mysterious  import  which  no  one  but  himself  un- 
derstood and  which,  it  was  said,  had  been  taught  him 
by  the  Most  Mysterious. 

No  one  seemed  to  notice  him  at  this  peculiar 
exercise,  as  that  was  the  etiquette  of  the  occasion. 
Tokala  noted  that  the  great  man  passed  frequently 
before  the  teepee  of  Cloud  Chief.  He  was  a  tall  and 
vigorous  person,  in  the  prime  of  life,  erect  and  with 
the  movement  of  a  splendid  animal.  His  shuffling 
stride  reminded  Tokala  of  Igmu-hanska,  the  long 
yellow  cat  of  the  mountains.  The  man  was  dressed 
resplendently,  his  trailing  bonnet  reaching  to  his 
heels,  his  leggings  and  shirt  of  yellow  buckskin  painted 
in  the  mystical  figures  of  his  craft.  His  face  was 
unpainted  but  flushed  with  a  glow  of  exultation,  and 
his  eyes  shone  with  a  strange  light. 


254  WINGS  OF  MORNING 

Until  night  fell  High  Bear  paced  to  and  fro  along 
the  river's  bank  passing  continually  before  the  lodge 
where  sat  Tokala  and  Mountain  Lamb.  He  con- 
tinued his  strange  chant,  no  word  of  which  seemed 
to  be  directed  to  any  living  creature.  Mountain 
Lamb  apparently  paid  the  man  no  heed,  but  as  often 
as  he  passed  seemed  to  be  looking  away  into  the  dis- 
tance. Tokala  supposed  that  the  mystery  worker 
was  perhaps  paying  a  compliment  to  the  war-chief 
of  the  Crows  in  thus  marching  and  chanting  before 
his  teepee. 

After  a  time  Mountain  Lamb  arose  quite  sud- 
denly and  went  within  the  lodge.  Tokala  followed 
and  the  evening  meal  was  cooked  and  eaten  in  silence. 
On  the  following  morning  Mountain  Lamb  seemed 
to  have  undergone  a  change  toward  her  captive 
guest.  She  spoke  pleasantly  when  at  all  and,  when 
Wings  of  Morning  came  and  again  there  was  work 
to  do  for  small  people,  she  made  no  unkind  remarks 
but  sat  looking  on  with  much  interest  while  Tokala 
manufactured  of  a  piece  of  buckskin,  some  deer's  hair, 
beads  and  thread,  a  Sioux  doll  which  had  more  the 
shape  of  a  real  baby  than  the  ordinary  one  of  Crow 
make. 

During  the  day  there  was  no  jar  in  the  household, 
though  Mountain  Lamb  was  uncommonly  silent  and 
thoughtful.     When  night  came  they  sat  outside  the 


WINGS  OF  MORNING  255 

teepee  as  usual  and  High  Bear,  again  in  fine  dress, 
began  to  walk  to  and  fro  before  the  teepee.  Tokala 
had  never  known  this  to  happen  twice  in  succession 
among  her  own  people  except  as  a  man  desired  to 
attract  attention  of  some  girl  or  woman  whom  he 
wished  to  marry.  As  she  was  the  one  unmarried 
inmate  of  the  lodge  she  began  to  feel  some  embar- 
rassment. 

This  was  quickly  dispelled  when,  upon  a  furtive 
study  of  the  face  of  Cloud  Chief's  wife,  in  which  she 
sought  to  read  interpretation  of  the  man's  acts,  she 
saw  that  which  filled  her  soul  with  greater  shame  than 
if  she  herself  had  been  openly  courted. 

The  man,  in  passing,  looked  with  a  bold  and  evil 
eye  straight  into  the  face  of  Mountain  Lamb  and 
Tokala  saw  that  young  woman's  eyes  drawn  to  his 
and  her  face  suffused  with  colour.  The  Sioux  girl 
immediately  arose  and  went  inside  the  lodge. 


XXI 
AN   EVIL   WOOING 

DAYS  passed  and  High  Bear  seemed  to  have 
cast  an  evil  spell  over  the  people  of  the 
village.  His  bold  courtship  of  the  wife  of 
their  chief  went  on  shamelessly  before  their  eyes. 
On  each  evening  at  the  going  down  of  the  sun  the 
man,  in  his  finest  array,  displayed  himself  before  the 
lodge  of  Mountain  Lamb.  She  did  not  sit  out- 
side especially  to  encourage  his  acts  but  the  weather 
was  warm,  the  tiyopa  open,  or  the  covers  were  rolled 
up  to  admit  of  air,  and  the  woman  was  well  aware  of 
the  attentions  of  her  former  suitor.  She  might 
readily  have  closed  her  teepee  or  have  slipped  away 
to  a  neighbour's  on  his  appearance.  That  she  did  not 
do  so  was  to  the  bitter  shame  of  Tokala. 

On  several  occasions  Wings  of  Morning  was  sit- 
ting in  the  open  lodge  but  arose  and  went  out  hastily 
at  the  first  appearance  of  High  Bear.  Many  of  the 
near  neighbours  of  Mountain  Lamb  also  would  wan- 
der away  from  their  teepees  so  as  to  appear  not  to 
notice  this  bold  courting  of  the  wife  of  one  whom 
they    honoured.     Not    so   with    Mandan    Woman, 

256 


AN  EVIL  WOOING  257 

mother  of  Mountain  Lamb.  When  she  saw  how 
matters  were  going  she  made  it  a  point  to  ap- 
pear at  her  daughter's  lodge,  whenever  the  mystery- 
man  began  his  parade,  and  she  immediately  sought 
to  engage  her  daughter  in  conversation.  She  was 
usually  unsuccessful.  Mountain  Lamb  would  answer 
in  monosyllables  or  not  at  all,  seeming  to  be  absorbed 
in  thought,  while  now  and  then  her  eyes  were  drawn 
irresistibly  to  the  passing  figure  of  the  mystery  man. 
It  was  wholly  outside  the  province  or  duty  of  an  In- 
dian mother  to  warn  her  daughter  so  long  as  the  lat- 
ter committed  no  overt  act  in  answer  to  the  lure 
thrown  out  to  her.  To  have  done  so  would  have 
been  to  forfeit  the  daughter's  respect  and  allegiance. 

"  The  mystery  man  has  cast  an  evil  spell  over  the 
wife  of  Cloud  Chief."  This  was  the  unspoken 
thought  of  the  mother,  Tokala  and  many  others. 
But  no  one  dared  to  make  these  thoughts  known 
even  to  his  or  her  closest  friend.  Such  is  the  moral 
code  of  the  Indian.  Suspicion  may  be  uttered 
against  those  in  authority  only  at  one's  peril. 

If  the  man  had  not  been  very  cunning,  if  he  had 
committed  any  open  indiscretion,  had  left  a  present 
of  value  before  her  teepee  or  had  spoken  enticing 
words,  the  spell  would  have  been  broken.  But  the 
powers  he  exercised  were  exactly  those  of  the  mes- 
merist   or  hypnotist   the   world   over.      The  same 


258  AN   EVIL  WOOING 

powers,  so  abundantly  possessed  by  certain  Indians, 
enabled  the  strong  and  magnetic  among  them  to  in- 
augurate the  ghost  dance,  to  induce  trances  and 
strange  visions  among  their  followers.  With  an 
emotional  people,  undisciplined  in  mind,  there  is  lit- 
tle defense  against  the  tremendous  force  of  such  per- 
sonalities. 

Thus  the  mother,  sister  and  friends  of  the  woman 
were  compelled  to  maintain  impotent  silence  while 
the  daring  wooer  wove  his  spell.  That  all  must  end  in 
tragedy  or  in  a  tribal  division  was  feared  by  the  wiser 
ones  and  gloom  settled  upon  the  village.  It  was  like 
a  time  when  clouds  of  strange  shape  and  colours  had 
hung  over  them — things  of  evil  portent  which  had 
scared  them  inside  their  teepees  and  put  to  rout,  for 
many  suns,  all  the  gaieties  of  the  season. 

Sudden  relief  from  suspense  came  with  a  courier 
from  Cloud  Chief  who  was  but  two  or  three  suns  in 
advance  of  the  hunting  party.  This  man,  announced 
in  a  crier's  voice,  riding  the  length  of  the  town,  that 
the  buffalo  hunters  had  been  very  successful  and  were 
bringing  in  their  pack  animals  loaded  with  meats  and 
robes.  Instantly  all  things,  save  this  joyful  news, 
were  forgotten.  Immediately  men  and  women  went 
out  for  their  ponies  and  before  night  fell  more  than 
half  the  folk  had  set  out  to  meet  the  hunters. 

By  sunset  the  teepees  seemed  well  nigh  empty. 


AN  EVIL  WOOING  259 

To  Tokala  a  crisis  had  come.  She  felt  that  now,  if 
ever,  she  must  escape  and  she  had  rejoiced  to  see 
each  party  of  horsemen,  each  loaded  travois  of 
women  and  children,  set  out.  She  had  seen  her 
horse,  Spotted  Fox,  brought  in  by  a  woman  and  then, 
for  some  reason,  after  the  pony  had  been  partly 
packed,  its  saddle  was  stripped  off  and  placed  upon 
another  animal  and  the  Fox  turned  loose.  A  slight 
lameness  of  one  hind  foot  appeared  to  be  the  cause  of 
the  pony's  release — though  that  would  hardly  have 
counted  had  there  not  been  an  abundance  of  ponies  at 
the  village.  Tokala  rejoiced  in  the  fact  that  the 
Fox  had  not  been  taken.  If  she  might  once  gain  the 
open  country  upon  his  back  she  would  quickly  put 
herself  beyond  reach  of  pursuit. 

All  else  but  the  furtive  thought  and  hope  of  escape 
had  gone  out  of  her  mind  when,  just  before  the  setting 
of  the  sun,  she  saw  High  Bear  again  walking  be- 
fore the  teepee.  Mountain  Lamb  was  within,  appar- 
ently deeply  engaged  in  sewing  ornaments  upon  a 
skirt  of  trader's  cloth.  That  she  had  not  gone  out  to 
meet  her  husband  was  not  to  be  wondered  at.  Her 
child,  nearly  old  enough  to  walk,  was  a  burden  which 
any  but  the  stoutest  of  Indian  mothers  might  have 
shrunk  from  carrying  upon  such  a  journey. 

"  But  now,"  Tokala  thought,  seeing  that  the  lodge 
was  closed  except  for  a  slight  fringe  of  the  tiyopa, 


260  AN  EVIL  WOOING 

"  now  the  woman  has  remembered  her  husband  and 
her  duty  to  him.  The  mystery  worker  cannot  longer 
control  her  mind."  And  the  ingenuous  girl  truly  re- 
joiced in  this  belief.  She  was,  however,  quickly  un- 
deceived. She  had  cooked  a  pot  of  roots  and  dried 
meat  just  as  darkness  came  on.  Preparing  a  dish 
of  this  she  set  it  before  Mountain  Lamb.  That 
young  woman  arose,  paying  her  not  the  slightest 
heed,  carefully  changed  the  skirt  she  wore  for  the  one 
she  had  been  ornamenting ;  then  combed  and 
anointed  her  hair  and  put  on  the  various  ornaments 
with  which  an  Indian  woman  loves  to  decorate  her 
person.  Then,  to  the  astonishment  and  dismay  of 
Tokala,  she  turned  to  her  and  calmly  said : 

"  I  am  now  going  out  to  dwell  in  the  teepee  of 
another.  I  leave  this  child  to  you  and  your  hus- 
band. It  is  Cloud  Chiefs  child  and  I  do  not  care  to 
bother  with  it  further.  I  want  nothing  that  is  his 
nor  anything  further  to  do  with  him." 

With  that  the  bewitched  woman  walked  out  of  the 
lodge  and  stood  in  the  path  of  High  Bear  who  was 
yet  parading  before  her  teepee.  Tokala  could  scarce 
believe  her  senses.  Fascinated  and  fearful  she  looked 
out  at  the  tiyopa  to  see  the  medicine  man  advance, 
with  a  proud  and  proprietary  air,  take  the  woman  by 
the  hand  and  lead  her  away  to  his  lodge. 

In  sheer  dismay  the  Sioux  girl  sat  upon  a  rug 


AN  EVIL  WOOING  261 

and  took  the  abandoned  infant  in  her  arms.  It  was 
Cloud  Chief's  child  and  for  that  reason,  if  no  other, 
she  had  come  to  love  the  little  one  which  she  had 
thought  plainly  resembled  him.  How  long  she  sat 
rocking  the  child  to  and  fro,  mourning  over  the 
heartlessness  of  its  mother,  she  never  knew.  She 
had  lost  all  consciousness  of  her  recent  determina- 
tion to  escape  when  Wings  of  Morning  came  into 
the  teepee  and  flung  herself  upon  her  face  on  the 
floor.  It  was  plain  that  the  girl  had  seen  and  under- 
stood what  had  happened  and  Tokala  said  nothing 
to  interrupt  her  paroxysm  of  grief. 

Presently  the  girl  ceased  her  sobbing  and  sat  up. 
She  stooped  over  the  teepee's  fire-hole,  filled  her 
hollowed  hands  with  ashes  and  flung  the  dust  upon 
her  head. 

"  My  sister  is  dead,"  she  said,  "  and  thus  I  mourn 
for  her." 

"  No,  she  is  not  dead ; "  said  Tokala  sadly,  "  that 
evil  man  has  cast  a  spell  upon  her.  I  think  truly 
that  she  is  not  at  fault.  It  is  because  those  wicked 
young  men  broke  the  peace  of  the  sun  dance,  that 
all  this  has  happened.  They  should  never  have 
brought  me  here." 

"  Do  you  truly  think  then  that  no  one  is  to 
blame  ?  "  asked  the  girl  eagerly. 

"  Truly  I  do ; "  said  Tokala,  "  no  one  but  those  bad 


262  AN  EVIL  WOOING 

young  men  and  this  evil  mystery  man  who  has  taken 
advantage  of  your  sister's  grief  at  my  coming." 

At  this  point  their  conversation  was  interrupted 
by  the  coming  of  Mandan  Woman.  There  was  no 
fire  in  the  teepee  and  the  woman  stood  hesitatingly 
for  a  moment  until  her  eyes  had  adjusted  themselves 
to  the  dim  light.  Then  she  snatched  the  child  from 
Tokala's  arms  and  bore  it  to  her  lodge.  And  some- 
how this  rude  act  lifted  a  great  weight  from  the 
Sioux  girl's  heart.  Mandan  Woman  had  seldom 
spoken  to  her,  regarding  her  as  a  usurper  in  her 
daughter's  household.  But  her  present  act  showed 
to  Tokala  that  there  were  women  of  virtue  among 
these  people  and  so  comforted  her.  The  child  would 
be  properly  cared  for  by  its  grandmother. 

Wings  of  Morning  lingered  in  the  teepee  for  a 
while ;  then  getting  only  monosyllables  from  Tokala 
in  her  attempts  at  conversation  she  arose,  greatly  to 
the  relief  of  the  Sioux  girl  who  feared  that  she  might 
choose  to  stay  all  night.  It  grieved  Tokala  to  thus 
part  with  her  young  friend  but  there  was  no  other 
way.  Upon  being  left  alone  she  sat  listening  until 
all  sounds  of  the  teepee  dwellers  had  ceased;  then 
she  bestirred  herselt.  She  took  enough  of  pemmi- 
can  to  last  her  for  ten  suns,  bestowed  it  in  a  parfleche, 
selected  a  small  woman's  saddle  and  a  bridle  from 
the   several  which   the  lodge  contained,  and  went 


AN  EVIL  WOOING  263 

forth  walking  among  the  teepees  in  a  confident  and 
unconcerned  manner.  She  had  put  on  a  blanket, 
after  the  fashion  of  a  man,  and  she  took  the  swinging 
stride  of  a  young  brave  walking  boldly  past  the 
nearer  lodges  and  so  on  out  upon  the  open  ground. 

All  was  still  in  the  village.  Most  of  the  dogs  had, 
scenting  a  full  feed  at  the  hunter's  camp,  followed 
the  travoix  of  the  women.  A  half-moon  looked 
down  upon  the  somnolent  teepees  and  a  light  breeze 
rustled  the  leaves  of  the  cotton- woods.  The  sky 
was  free  of  clouds  and  the  near  mountains  loomed, 
in  clear  cut  outlines,  so  close  that  they  seemed  to 
invite  one  to  a  sudden  scramble  into  the  shelter  of 
their  fastnesses.  Yet  there  was  no  cause  for  haste 
or  fear.  The  village  rested  in  quiescence,  herself 
quite  forgotten  in  the  recent  excitements,  the  peo- 
ple secure  from  attack  because  of  reports  of  their 
hunter  scouts  that  no  enemies  had  been  seen. 

As  she  searched  for  the  Spotted  Fox  Tokala  re- 
joiced in  the  guile  which  had  led  people  to  suppose 
that  she  willingly  waited  the  coming  of  their  chief. 
The  young  men  had  all  gone  out  to  meet  the  hunt- 
ers and  Tokala  was  not  once  challenged  while  she 
wandered  among  the  pony  herds.  Her  escape  was 
easy  and  void  of  any  except  inward  excitement.  She 
found  her  pony  at  last  by  gently  calling  and  located 
him  by  his  answering  nicker  of  inquiry.     Two  or 


264  AN  EVIL  WOOING 

three  soft  calls,  as  she  approached,  fetched  the  animal 
to  her  and,  like  a  faithful  dog,  the  Fox  stood  to  be 
caressed  by  his  mistress.  He  had  been  a  young  colt 
of  the  number  which  the  Brule  had  given  to  her 
father  and  for  three  years  had  been  Tokala's  riding 
pony. 

Having  done  all  with  boldness  the  girl  adjusted 
saddle,  bridle  and  trappings  and  galloped  out  of  the 
village. 


XXII 
TOKALA'S    LONE    TRAIL 

BEFORE  morning  Tokala  had  passed  behind 
a  chain  of  mountains  which  sheltered  the 
Crow  village  and  out  upon  the  open  plain. 
When  daylight  came  she  cast  anxious  glances  over  a 
long,  clear  stretch  to  rearward  fearful  of  any  sign  of 
movement.  Though  she  kept  an  eye  to  the  rear, 
noon  came  and  she  had  seen  nothing  more  formi- 
dable than  the  numerous  antelope.  Often  one  of  these 
would  scurry  to  a  near  height  there  to  wheel  and 
launch  at  her  shrill  snorts  of  defiance.  These  small 
animals  seemed  indeed  at  times  to  entice  her  to  a 
trial  of  speed.  When  one  bolder  than  its  fellows 
stood  at  a  little  distance,  stamping  its  feet  and  whist- 
ling saucily  at  her,  she  addressed  the  animal  after  her 
kind. 

"  Ho,  Negasan,"  she  said,  "  I  know  that  you  are 
swifter  now  than  my  Spotted  Fox ;  but  if  he  were 
fresh  and  not  lame  in  one  foot  I  would  teach  you 
that  you  are  really  a  silly  fellow.  Do  not  stand 
there  longer  and  boast  for   I  consider  that  you  are 

very  vain." 

265 


266       TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL 

Such  an  incident  relieved  the  monotony  of  her 
travel.  She  stopped  barely  long  enough  at  midday 
to  water  the  Fox  and  permit  him  to  graze  for  a  brief 
time ;  then  mounted  and  rode  on  until  night  fell. 
About  sunset  she  reached  the  foot-hills  of  another 
range  of  mountains,  which  stretched,  a  cloud  touch- 
ing barrier,  across  her  trail. 

The  Spotted  Fox  had  gone  so  lame  as  hardly  to 
be  able  to  travel.  Tokala  dismounted  and  anxiously 
examined  the  affected  hoof.  She  discovered  at 
length  that  a  small  gravel  had  become  imbedded  in 
the  frog  and  that  inflammation  of  the  upper  hoof  had 
resulted.  She  was  able  to  extract  the  offender,  yet 
it  was  plain  that  the  pony  must  have  rest  to  recover. 
When  she  reflected  that  several  suns  must  pass  be- 
fore she  could  hope  to  travel  swiftly  Tokala  was  near 
to  despair.  There  was  nothing  for  it,  however,  but 
to  take  to  the  mountains  until  her  pony  should 
recover.  She  scanned  carefully  the  slopes  and 
canons  of  the  nearer  heights.  There  was  still 
enough  of  daylight  left  to  pick  a  line  of  feasible 
ascent. 

A  canon  waterway  with  bed  of  dry  sand  offered 
the  easiest  path  for  a  lame  horse,  yet  also  the  plainest 
tracking  should  pursuit  follow  close  upon  her.  A 
brief  examination,  however,  discovered  to  her  that 
this  dry  channel  was  the  runway  of  the  big-eared 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL       267 

deer  and  was  travelled  by  many  in  going  to  and  from 
the  nearest  water.  Along  with  this  proof  came  the 
knowledge  that,  upon  the  mountains,  she  would  find 
no  water  for  considerable  distance. 

The  deer  would  quickly  obliterate  her  horse's  foot- 
prints— before  morning  with  surety — but  she  must 
return  to  the  lower  levels  for  water  or  must  push  on 
over  the  heights  to  find  it  upon  the  other  side.  In 
the  end  she  decided  that  into  the  mountains  she 
must  go.  There  she  could  watch  for  the  approach 
of  pursuers  and,  if  closely  pressed,  abandon  her  pony 
and  take  to  hiding. 

She  rode  her  horse  to  water  and  then,  for  his 
ease  in  travel,  dismounted  and  led  him.  The  way 
to  the  heights  was  long  and  wearisome  and  the 
limping  pony  and  Tokala  were  exhausted  when  she 
halted  for  the  night  in  a  copse  of  pinon. 

Tokala  dropped  upon  the  pine  needles  and  knew 
no  more  until  Wi  had  peered  over  the  mountain 
heights  and  searched  all  the  interstices  of  her  shel- 
ter with  tiny  shoots  of  light.  "  Hau !  "  she  ex- 
claimed, "  I  have  been  very  slothful — the  enemy 
might  indeed  have  come  upon  me  as  I  lay." 

She  found  the  lame  horse  near  at  hand  and  nick- 
ering plaintively  for  water.  She  herself  was  very 
thirsty — so  much  so  that  she  was  unable  to  eat  a 
mouthful  of  her  pemmican.    "  Come,  my  Fox,"  she 


268        TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL 

said,  "  we  must  look  for  the  enemy  to  know  if  we 
may  hunt  for  water." 

The  pony  was  so  lame  as  hardly  to  be  able  to 
touch  his  foot  to  the  ground.  He  hobbled  after  his 
mistress  grunting  with  pain.  She  saw  that  she 
would  have  great  difficulty  to  lead  him  down  to  the 
stream.  Toilsomely  she  made  her  way  to  the  nearest 
height  which  overlooked  the  plains  she  had  traveled 
across.  After  scanning  carefully  all  the  lower  levels 
she  could  see  nothing  to  alarm.  She  led  her 
wretchedly  lame  pony  along  the  crest  of  a  stony 
ridge  looking  for  a  short  way  of  descent  to  water. 
A  joyful  shout  escaped  her  when,  in  the  depths  of 
a  rocky  gulch,  she  discovered  a  pool,  a  small,  crystal 
clear  pond  glimmering  within  a  rock  basin  which, 
though  impossible  of  access  to  hoofed  creatures, 
was  within  her  reach  by  aid  of  her  rawhide  picket 
rope.  She  loosed  her  pony,  emptied  her  parfleche 
bag  of  its  provisions  and,  with  rope  in  hand, 
scrambled  into  the  ravine. 

She  let  herself  into  the  notch  and  drank  her  fill. 
Though  the  draught  was  somewhat  bitter  it  tasted 
good.  She  filled  her  bag  and,  though  water  trickled 
from  it  as  she  climbed,  there  was  enough  to  quench 
the  pony's  thirst. 

Further  search  discovered  an  opening  where 
the  hill  grass   was   sufficient   to   graze    the    horse. 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL        269 

There  were  many  deep  recesses  and  rocky  ravines 
grown  to  thick  bodies  of  small  piiions — good  hiding 
if  need  were  and  here  Tokala  determined  to  stay  un- 
til her  pony  should  recover.  She  argued  that  if  she 
were  pursued  the  Crows  would  not  think  of  looking 
for  her  on  the  near  side  of  these  mountains.  Her 
covert  was  within  sight  of  the  range  which  sheltered 
the  Absaroke  town  and,  upon  any  near  pinnacle,  she 
could  overlook  all  the  plain  between.  She  would 
not  be  able  to  see  persons  approach  in  the  far  dis- 
tance ;  but  for  a  considerable  time  they  must — if  in 
daylight — travel  within  her  view. 

That  any  would  be  able  to  trail  her  up  the  sandy 
canon  was  impossible  for,  during  the  morning,  she 
saw  droves  of  deer  going  to  the  stream  below  and, 
from  the  point  they  left  the  foot-hills,  it  was  certain 
that  they  had  taken  down  the  trail  she  had  followed. 
Thus  assured  Tokala  began  to  feel  safe  in  her  re- 
treat. And  now  with  no  occupation,  but  to  possess 
her  soul  in  patience,  she  found  time  for  reflection. 
That  Cloud  Chief  had  had  no  part  in  her  capture  had 
become  to  her  a  certainty  and  she  wondered  if  she 
had  been  wise  in  her  hasty  flight  from  the  Crow  vil- 
lage. Had  not  Koska  always  proven  himself  a  man 
of  honour  ?  There  had  been  no  evil  talk  of  him  at 
the  sun  dance. 

Her  mind  ran  back  over  all  her  knowledge  of  the 


270       TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL 

man  to  find  justification  of  the  fears  which  had  driven 
her  to  undertake  escape.  She  reproached  herself  at 
one  time  for  hasty  action  and  again  was  justified  in 
her  fears.  It  seemed  that  she  might  have  trusted 
her  lover,  in  memory  of  his  faithful  following  and 
rescue  in  her  time  of  direst  need.  Was  it  not 
probable  that  he  would  have  furnished  her  with  a 
safe  escort  homeward  ? 

But  if  he  had  not  been  willing  to  part  with  her ! 
Ah,  she  could  never  have  lived  among  those  people. 
Her  face  grew  hot  in  memory  of  the  brazen  act  of 
Mountain  Lamb.  No  woman  among  the  Oglalas 
would  have  allowed  herself  to  be  so  overcome  and, 
if  she  had,  death  would  speedily  have  been  her 
portion.  If  her  husband  had  not  killed  her  then 
her  father,  her  brothers  or  uncles,  would  have  done 
so.  And  Tokala  felt  that  such  death  were  richly 
merited. 

Yet  the  knowledge  that  her  lover  was  now  free, 
that  he  could  not  take  back  his  former  wife,  that, 
by  the  Indian  law,  he  stood  as  though  he  had  never 
married,  had  its  influence  with  the  maiden.  She  felt 
that  it  was  no  longer  shame  to  let  her  heart  go  out  to 
him.  In  the  shade  of  the  pines  she  often  sat  chant- 
ing softly  her  love  for  the  matchless  one.  The 
words  she  used  were  vague  in  meaning  and  only  the 
heart  could  interpret  them. 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL       271 

Thus  amid  primeval  silence  sat  the  solitary,  un- 
afraid because  of  the  righteousness  of  her  cause. 
There  were  those,  however,  who  spoke  to  the  lone 
hider,  the  wild  ones — people  of  another  world. 
Pine-hen  and  magpie,  deer  and  whistling  rabbit,  the 
big  horn,  the  gray  cat  of  the  mountains,  chippering 
squirrels  and  singing  locusts,  no  one  but  offered  her 
sympathy  and  protection. 

A  great  gray  bear,  ^twice  within  as  many  days, 
passed  upon  a  little  ridge  and,  though  she  stood 
ready  to  take  to  a  tree,  Mato-osansan  paused  only  to 
give  her  a  kindly  glance  and  then  went  on  about  his 
business.  Igmu-hanska,  also,  the  cougar,  crept  to- 
ward her,  his  yellow  eyes  ablaze,  only  to  halt,  when 
she  was  faint  of  heart,  and  let  his  bristling  hair  drop 
to  sleek  innocence  and  so  pass  on.  Several  times  it 
happened  that  the  great  yellow  cat  came  near  to  her 
while  Tokala  sat  with  fearful  and  fascinated  eyes 
praying  to  the  Great  Mystery  to  preserve  her  life. 
Then  she  knew  that  Igma-hanska  had  his  lair  very 
near  and  she  moved  her  shelter  to  another  slope  of 
the  ridge. 

Often  from  a  height  she  scanned  the  immense 
stretches  of  plain  spread  out  to  west,  south  and 
north  and  would  have  almost  been  relieved — so 
vastly  lonesome  were  the  reaches — had  she  dis- 
covered people  approaching,  even  though  they  had 


272        TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL 

been  Crows  in  chase  of  her.  Only  her  faith  in  the 
aid  of  the  Most  Mysterious  could  have  kept  her  in 
the  mountains. 

Sometimes  she  almost  doubted  whether  all  the 
Oglalas  had  not  been  in  a  conspiracy  to  force  her 
into  the  teepee  of  the  Absaroke  chief.  Then  juster 
reasoning  would  say  to  her,  "  Lo,  what  could  you 
expect  ?  Your  trail  and  that  of  the  cunning  young 
men  were  lost  in  the  Sacred  Country  and  your  people 
could  not  have  known  of  what  tribe  they  were  who 
would  so  dare  to  break  the  truce  of  the  sun  dance. 
Not  one  moon  has  passed  since  you  were  taken  and 
you  are  looking  for  the  impossible.  Even  since  you 
left  the  village  of  the  Crows  your  people  may  have 
arrived  there  seeking  you." 

When  her  position  became  near  to  unbearable  she 
would  descend  to  the  lower  heights  seeking  for  roots 
and  buffalo  berries.  These  she  found  quite  plenti- 
fully and,  upon  higher  ground,  discovered  the 
burrows  of  numerous  bush  rabbits.  For  these  she 
made  snares  of  buckskin  strings  and,  after  a  little 
practice,  was  able  to  take  the  small  animals  almost  at 
will.  Flint  and  steel  she  had  not  forgotten  among 
other  supplies. 

The  weather  was  warm,  it  being  now  the  last  of 
summer — the  moon  of  no  rain.  The  lone  hider 
needed  no  cover  save  her  blanket  and  the  shelter  of 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL       273 

the  pinons.  Her  night  couch  was  under  a  pine  the 
branches  of  which  stooped  close  to  the  ground  and 
kept  off  the  chill  of  dews.  Her  pony  mended  but 
slowly.  At  the  end  of  seven  suns  he  was  so  little 
improved  that  Tokala  felt  inclined  to  brave  the  hard- 
ships and  perils  of  a  foot-journey.  Then,  on  the 
eighth  morning,  the  Fox  showed  marked  improve- 
ment and  the  girl  was  quite  happy.  She  set  many 
snares  for  rabbits  and  smoked  meat  for  use  upon 
the  trail. 

Ten  suns  had  passed  when  Tokala  took  up  the 
journey  homeward.  She  had  yet  seen  no  sign  of  a 
human  being,  nor  of  any  life  upon  the  plain  except 
the  flashing  signals  of  the  antelope  which  fed  upon 
the  highlands,  and  which  gleamed  like  the  turn  of 
a  fish's  white  belly  in  a  lake.  Spotted  Fox  was 
still  somewhat  lame  but  all  the  fever  had  gone  out 
of  his  hoof  and  she  had  no  more  fear  that  it  would 
seriously  trouble  the  animal.  Every  day  she  had 
bathed  the  foot  in  cold  water,  fetched  laboriously 
up  from  her  pool.  And  lastly  she  had  bandaged  the 
hock,  binding  on  certain  wilted  leaves  which  were 
known  to  allay  irritation. 

She  took  her  way  over  the  mountains,  carefully 
picking  a  route  which  her  eye  had  marked  from 
many    heights.     Hours    of   slow    climbing  brought 


274       TOKALA'S  LONE  TEAIL 

her  to  an  old  trail  and  to  the  summit  of  a  pass  where 
again  a  wide  plain  stretched  below  as  far  as  the  eye 
could  reach.  The  distance  seemed  illimitable — dis- 
couraging. Could  one  ever  cross  all  that  wide  under- 
world and  hope  to  go  unnoted  of  enemies  ?  Only- 
strong  war  parties  attempted  such  travel  in  the  coun- 
try of  the  Crows  and  Blackfeet.  She  had  accom- 
plished the  pass  and  some  descent  of  the  opposite 
slope  when  Wi  was  yet  two  hands  high  and  her  horse 
showed  no  sign  of  giving  out.  Yet  her  courage 
failed  of  nearer  approach  to  the  open  plains.  Much 
as  she  feared  night  travel,  because  of  the  nameless 
terrors  of  the  trail,  she  concluded  to  go  across  the 
open  country  in  darkness. 

Her  camp  was  at  the  head  of  a  clear  mountain 
stream  where  a  spring  bubbled  from  beneath  a  ledge 
and  which,  after  the  bitter  waters  of  the  other  side, 
Tokala  found  most  refreshing.  The  woods  and  the 
bush  and  vegetation  were  here  more  green  and  fresh. 
A  variety  of  highland  raspberries  had  only  ripened 
of  late,  and  the  luscious  red  fruit  was  so  abundant 
that  there  was  enough  for  all  the  people,  whether  of 
wings  or  of  four  feet.  The  evidence  that  many  bears 
were  in  the  habit  of  feasting  among  the  berry  patches 
did  not  alarm  Tokala,  who  knew  that  both  mato-sapa, 
the  black  bear,  and  mato-hota,  the  grizzly,  were 
harmless  in  this  season  of  abundance. 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL       275 

By  the  aid  of  her  knife,  she  made  a  light 
wicky-up  of  bullberry  bush  and  camped  by  the  spring. 
She  awoke  at  dawn  to  find  the  mountain  aglow  with 
wonderful  light,  such  as  she  had  seldom  seen  on  land 
or  water.  A  span  of  clouds,  like  eagles'  feathers, lay 
across  the  sky  and  these  were  painted  in  colours 
which  the  eye  of  mortal  may  behold  save  upon 
rare  occasions.  Brilliant  sky-tints  of  red  and  orange, 
crimson  and  gold,  were  displayed  with  interming- 
ling shades  such  as  no  human  mind  might  con- 
ceive in  the  most  cunning  mixture  of  earth  paints. 
Added  to  this  gorgeous  colouring  a  far  strip  of  east- 
ern sky  was  blood  red  and  overhead,  touching  this 
band,  were  reflected  lights — the  whole  a  vast  illumi- 
nated dome  which  was  plainly  a  manifestation  of  the 
Great  Mystery. 

Gazing  upon  this  divine  scheme  of  colours  Tokala's 
soul  was  humbled  before  a  manifest  shrine  of  the 
Most  Mysterious.  She  fell  upon  her  face  and  prayed, 
"  O  Great  and  Most  Mysterious,  who  dost  paint  the 
sky  for  a  sign  to  thy  puny  child ;  let  me  read  thy 
message  aright.  If  it  be  that  the  red  mean  war  and 
danger,  show  me  a  sign  that  I  may  escape  in  due 
season.  Wilt  thou,  O  Most  Mysterious,  bring  me  to 
mine  own  people  in  safety ;  then  command  of  me  a 
penance  and  I  will  do  it,  even  to  the  severing  of  my 
right  hand." 


276        TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL 

When  she  had  concluded  this  prayer  Tokala  ate 
her  breakfast  and  again  mounted  the  Fox.  Taking 
a  difficult  and  stony  trail  she  descended  for  some  bow- 
shots and  then  her  roving  eye,  scanning  the  plain  be- 
low, caught  a  movement  of  life  in  the  far  distance. 
She  halted  and  anxiously  watched  a  swarm  of  crea- 
tures, insect-like  in  the  far  distance,  until  these  had 
resolved  into  what  appeared  to  be  a  herd  of  animals. 
They  might  be  buffalo  or  elk,  but  Tokala  was  fearful 
and  rode  her  horse  into  the  shelter  of  overhanging 
rocks  where  she  might  sit  and  watch,  with  no  possi- 
bility of  discovery. 

No  long  time  was  required  to  convince  her  that  the 
moving  specks — a  great  cloud  of  them — were  horse- 
men !  And  the  speed  at  which  they  were  coming 
told  her  that  a  war-party  was  riding  to  strike  an 
enemy.  They  were  coming  from  toward  her  own 
country,  but  this  could  signify  nothing  as  to  their 
identity.  They  might  have  come  all  the  way  from 
the  Yellow  River  or  the  Missouri,  and  have  been 
Pawnees,  Arickaras,  or  Gros  Ventres,  on  their  way  to 
strike  at  the  Susuni  or  the  Nez  Perce  tribes,  who  had 
not  been  bidden  to  the  sun  dance. 

Were  they  about  to  go  through  the  pass  she  had 
descended  or  did  they  intend  to  skirt  the  mountains, 
passing  to  the  south  ?  This  was  a  question  of  fearful 
import  to  Tokala ;  for,  should  they  come  straight  up 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL       277 

the  pass,  it  would  be  impossible  that  her  trail  should 
escape  discovery  of  their  scouts ;  and  the  Spotted 
Fox  was  not  yet  in  condition  for  a  chase.  Should  it 
happen  that  they  chose  the  pass,  she  could  have  no 
other  alternative  than  to  abandon  her  pony  and  take 
to  hiding. 

With  intense  anxiety  she  watched  while  a  big  war- 
party  swept  on  toward  the  mountains.  She  tried  to 
count  them  as  they  passed  like  scattered  files  of  ants 
over  the  rises  and  into  the  prairie  ravines.  She  knew 
that  her  estimate  was  without  accuracy,  but  she  had 
made  out  that  there  were  at  least  three  hundred  and, 
from  their  manner  of  riding  erratically  and  of  fre- 
quently bunching  in  groups,  she  was  also  certain  that 
the  most  of  them  were  youthful  warriors.  That  they 
were  all  young  men  she  concluded  later  on. 

As  a  curve  of  the  mountain  she  was  descending 
swept  away  to  southward,  and  the  party  were  mov- 
ing toward  its  greatest  arc,  it  was  impossible  to 
judge — until  they  should  reach  a  thread  of  valley 
which  wound  among  the  foot-hills,  showing  here  and 
there  a  silver  strand  of  current — whether  they  were 
to  go  on  around  the  spur  or  turn  up  the  valley  of  the 
stream,  at  whose  head  she  had  made  her  night  camp. 
It  was  highly  important  that  she  should  know  and 
Tokala  waited  with  patience.  She  could  not  ac- 
curately judge  the  distance  to  the  stream  below,  but 


278        TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL 

her  eye  told  her  that  it  was  a  great  number  of  bow- 
shots and  that  the  war-party's  scouts  could  not  reach 
her  present  position  for  a  considerable  time.  From 
her  height,  and  in  that  wonderfully  clear  atmosphere, 
horsemen  could  be  seen  plainly  at  the  distance  of 
half-a-day's  travel — at  least  to  eyes  as  keen  and  inured 
to  the  open  as  her  own. 

On  came  the  scattered  hordes  over  the  plain,  at 
last  dipping  into  a  turn  of  the  valley  which  was  to  her 
the  particular  point  of  solicitude.  Once  they  had 
reached  the  channel  the  foremost  riders  halted  amid- 
stream — as  it  appeared  to  water  their  horses — and 
awaited  the  coming  of  their  fellows.  The  stragglers 
were  some  time  in  coming  up  and,  in  the  meantime, 
those  who  had  arrived  drew  up  on  the  banks  of  the 
creek  and  dismounted.  It  soon  became  evident 
that  they  were  to  make  a  temporary  camp  and  that 
her  doubt  as  to  the  direction  they  would  take  in 
crossing  the  mountains  could  not  be  immediately  dis- 
pelled. 

Tokala  let  her  pony  go  loose  with  dragging  lariat 
and  secured  a  perch — concealed — upon  a  height  which 
commanded  every  movement  of  horse  or  footman 
in  the  valley.  Nothing  was  left  but  to  possess  her 
soul  in  patience  until  some  stir  below  should  indi- 
cate which  way  the  party  was  bound. 

As  noon  came  on  the  atmosphere  further  cleared 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL       279 

and  the  men  and  animals  moved  about  or  rested,  in 
such  apparent  nearness  as  to  induce  a  feeling  of 
alarm  lest  she  had  indeed  lingered  too  long.  It  now 
seemed  certain  that  there  were  spotted  horses  among 
the  herded  animals,  which  she  recognized  as  belong- 
ing to  her  own  clan.  When  she  reached  this  con- 
viction, she  was,  for  the  moment,  elated  and  then  as 
speedily  warned  to  be  doubly  on  the  alert  against  dis- 
covery. 

For  many  days  all  thought  of  Catches  Eagles,  or 
possible  danger  of  being  captured  by  his  followers, 
had  been  banished  from  her  mind.  Since  he  had 
failed  in  overtaking  the  young  men  who  had  carried 
her  off,  it  had  seemed  that  he  must — if  he  had  har- 
boured such  thought — have  given  up  all  hope  of  ob- 
taining her  for  his  wife.  He  was  naturally  base  and 
evil,  from  Tokala's  point  of  view,  and  so  would  have 
concluded  that  she  had  yielded  to  the  inevitable  and 
had  become  the  wife  of  his  rival.  But  it  appeared 
that  the  men  below  were  of  her  own  people,  and 
young  men  ;  whom  else  could  they  be  but  the  follow- 
ers of  that  hated  chief,  bent  upon  making  war  upon 
the  Crows  and  especially  upon  a  rival  who  had  out- 
witted the  popular  Sans  Arc. 

There  was — if  this  were  to  prove  the  case — more 
than  ever  a  reason  that  she  should  keep  clear  of  their 
clutches.     Catches  Eagles,  if  he  had  really  gone  to 


280        TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL 

war  on  her  account,  would  stop  at  nothing  to  gain  his 
purpose,  and  far  better  were  it  for  her  to  have  re- 
mained among  the  Crows  !  Was  ever  maiden  re- 
duced to  such  straits  ?  That  she  might  not  gladly  go 
down  to  her  own  people  was  grief,  for  the  moment, 
almost  too  great  to  be  borne. 

Yet,  so  long  as  there  were  any  element  of  uncer- 
tainty, Tokala  felt  that  she  could  not  rest.  She  must 
know,  even  at  greater  risk,  whether  these  were  Oglalas 
and  if  truly  Catches  Eagles  were  their  leader.  To  this 
end  she  made  fast  the  Spotted  Fox  to  a  pine  and  im- 
mediately began  descent  of  the  mountain.  She 
avoided  the  canon  of  the  brook,  along  which  she  had 
been  travelling,  and  descended  a  scarp  covered  with 
trees  and  chaparral,  a  steep  up  which  no  rider  could 
have  hoped  to  force  his  mount.  This  slope  well 
nigh  overhung  the  Indian  camp  and,  but  for  its  abun- 
dant cover,  must  early  have  betrayed  her  to  the  war- 
party's  scouts  posted,  as  she  could  see,  upon  the  hills 
on  either  side  of  the  valley. 

It  was  toilsome,  bone-wearying  business,  that  des- 
cent. Sometimes  the  girl  was  compelled  to  crawl  on 
hands  and  knees,  keeping  behind  the  least  projec- 
tion to  be  out  of  sight.  Toilsomely  she  descended, 
inch  by  inch,  until  at  last,  behind  a  rock  ledge  and 
under  cover  of  chaparral,  she  was  able  to  look  down 


TOKALA'S  LONE  TRAIL       281 

upon  the  war  camp  at  such  near  quarters  that  individ- 
uals were  recognizable.  In  a  little  time  she  had  dis- 
covered enough  to  convince  her  that  her  worst  fears 
were  realized. 

Numbers  of  young  warriors  of  the  Oglalas  min- 
gled with  Sans  Arcs,  gay,  clouted  fellows,  well 
known  at  home  as  adherents  of  Catches  Eagles,  who 
had  been  travelling  in  company  with  the  Oglalas 
when  she  had  been  taken.  The  camp  was  like  a  gala 
party.  They  had  cooked  and  eaten  the  noonday 
meal  and,  out  of  sheer  exuberance,  were  engaged  in 
frolics  and  games.  Her  eyes  sought  all  the  groups 
eagerly  and  at  last,  coming  up  from  the  creek  where 
a  number  had  been  seated  at  the  water's  edge,  she 
saw  Catches  Eagles  himself.  He  had  on  his  war-shirt 
and  a  bonnet  of  red  eagles'  feathers,  gaily  bedecked 
for  fighting. 

She  had  expected  this  outcome  yet  Tokala  was 
well  nigh  overcome  at  the  sight.  Her  terror,  lest  the 
party  should  take  its  way  up  the  mountain,  discover 
her  horse  and  so  leave  her  on  foot,  in  this  far  wilder- 
ness, was  the  most  poignant  she  had  suffered  since  her 
capture.  Even  now  some  one  had  given  a  signal  and 
herders  were  bringing  in  the  ponies.  The  young 
men  gathered  their  weapons  and  their  slight  camp 
effects    and   ran,  jostling   each   other,   to   meet  the 


282       TOKALA'S  LONE  TKAIL 

herds.  Tokala,  lying  upon  her  face,  scarcely 
breathed  while  the  war-party  mounted;  then — oh, 
joy! — the  cavalcade  turned  down  the  river  valley 
and  soon  they  rounded  a  curve  and  were  out  of  sight. 


XXIII 
WHOM    THE    GODS    LOVE 

TOKALA  again  spent  a  night  on  the  moun- 
tains.   Her  perplexity  was  extreme.   Which 
way  lay  safety— if  indeed  there  were  any- 
where safety  for  her?     Straggling  scouts  of  the  war 
party  were  likely  to  appear  upon  the  plain  at  any 
time.     Then,  too,  if  there  were  to  be  a  battle  with 
the  Crows,  and  Catches  Eagles  were  to  be  defeated, 
the  survivors  would  scatter  into  small  parties  for  bet- 
ter safety  in  flight  and  she  would— if  travelling  to- 
ward home— be  in  constant  danger  of  discovery. 

The  Sioux  girl  had  never  been  a  lover  of  war  and 

the  thought  that  her  refusal  to  marry,  after  she  had 

been  allowed  her  choice  of  suitors,  had  brought  on  a 

war  which  had  broken  the  peace  of  the  sun  dance, 

was   disheartening.     Would  there  ever  again  be  a 

time   of   safety?     In   all   the    history   of  her   tribe 

Tokala  had  never  heard  of  man  or  maiden  in  such 

pitiful  plight.     Long  she  lay  upon  her  face  praying 

to  the  Most  Mysterious  for  guidance.     She  was  so 

lying  when   some   one   spoke   to   her   in  her   own 

tongue. 

283 


284       WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE 

"  My  daughter,  why  this  solitary  grieving  ?  " 

For  some  reason  the  girl  lifted  her  face  feeling 
neither  surprise  nor  alarm.  She  had  not  recognized 
his  voice,  but  at  once  knew  the  person  who  stood 
before  her.  It  was  a  good  father  of  the  white  peo- 
ple whom  she  had  seen  many  times — whom  all  In- 
dians loved — and  whose  only  fault  was  that  he 
taught  foolish  and  impractical  things  in  belief.  He 
was  known  to  the  Sioux  as  Holy  Hand. 

It  was  father  DeSmet,  the  Catholic  missionary,  and 
beyond  him  stood  another  and  younger  man. 
Tokala  felt  no  fear  but  rather  a  rush  of  gratitude ; 
for  no  Indian  girl  could  come  to  harm  in  the  com- 
pany of  Holy  Hand.  Was  not  the  appearance  of 
these  persons  indeed  an  answer  to  the  many  prayers 
she  had  made  to  the  Great  Mystery?  The  two 
could  not  have  approached  so  near,  without  her 
hearing  their  footsteps,  had  she  not  been  deeply  en- 
gaged in  imploring  help  of  the  higher  powers. 

"  So  !  why,  why  !  "  exclaimed  the  father,  "  you  are 
surely  the  daughter  of  Yellow-Iron  of  the  Oglalas  ! 
Is  it  possible  that  we  find  Tokala  Noni  in  this  far 
country  and  alone  ?  " 

One  of  the  secrets  of  this  good  man's  influence, 
and  immunity  from  danger,  among  Indians  was  his 
ready  recognition  of  any  one  whom  he  had  ever  met 
and  spoken  with.     To  the  smallest  child  he  was  able 


WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE       285 

to  recall  name  and  face  of  each  member  of  any 
family  with  whom  he  had  visited.  His  astonishment 
at  meeting  Tokala  alone,  in  a  country  hostile  to  the 
Sioux,  was  very  great  but  no  greater  than  his  under- 
standing of  Indians  and  their  ways  and  his  far-seeing 
grasp  of  a  situation.  Without  waiting  for  the  girl 
to  reply  he  said  : 

"  My  daughter,  you  have  been  captured  and  have 
escaped  so  far  from  the  enemy  ?  " 

"  It  is  true ; "  replied  Tokala  simply,  "  the  Ab- 
saroke  took  me  from  south  of  the  Mysterious  Coun- 
try more  than  one  moon  since.  I  got  away  and  am 
now  on  my  way  homeward." 

She  had  arisen  and  stood  before  him,  her  face 
showing  deep  traces  of  hardship  and  grief.  The 
priest  looked  at  her  with  a  great  pity  and  groaned  in 
spirit  that  such  things  could  be.  "  Ah,  my  poor 
wild  children,"  he  murmured  in  his  own  tongue, 
"  shall  we  ever  convert  you  to  be  followers  of  the 
blessed  Jesus?" 

Seeing  a  look  of  trouble  and  uncertainty  in  the 
girl's  face  he  spoke  directly  and  reassuringly.  "  My 
daughter  need  have  no  further  grief ; "  he  said,  "  we 
go  to  the  southwest,  the  country  of  the  Cheyennes, 
and  you  shall  travel  with  us  to  your  own  people. 
We  will  see  you  safely  with  them.  A  young 
Frenchman,  Raymond  Bonhomme,  who  is  with  me, 


286       WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE 

is  an  Indian  trader  and  friendly  with  all  tribes. 
No  harm  can  come  to  you  with  us  unless  we  are  set 
upon  by  some  strange  band  of  hostiles.  We  were 
coming  through  this  pass  from  the  Forked  River 
(Yellowstone)  and  came  upon  your  horse  back  here 
a  way.  Thinking  that  a  camp  or  village  might  be 
near  we  dismounted  and  came  on  afoot." 

While  he  had  been  assuring  her  of  his  protection 
Tokala's  face  had  undergone  a  wonderful  change. 
Home  and  safety  were  practically  assured  to  her  out 
of  the  depths  of  a  hopeless  situation  !  The  light 
that  is  not  seen  on  land  or  sea  leaped  into  her  eyes ; 
the  blood,  pulsing  back  from  her  sluggish  heart, 
illumined  her  face  and  her  whole  attitude  was  that  of 
one  who  has  realized  absolutely  an  answer  to  prayer. 

It  was  not  the  Indian  way  to  express  thanks  by 
words  or  by  open  display  of  emotion.  The  joy  of 
deliverance  had  but  a  brief  expression  and  Tokala, 
warmly  alive  and  ready  to  become  a  helpful  com- 
panion, gathered  her  blanket  about  her. 

"  You  did  not  camp  on  the  mountain,"  she  asked, 
"  so  you  have  come  a  long  way  without  eating  ? 
Come,  I  have  gathered  fruit  and  have  some  very 
good  roots  which  I  will  roast,  besides  some  meat." 

"  You  are  good  and  thoughtful,  my  child,"  said 
the  priest.  "  It  is  true  that  we  have  been  long 
without  eating,  having  found  no  water  in  the  pass  un- 


WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE       287 

til  we  reached  the  stream  where  your  pony  was 
picketed.  It  will  be  good  to  have  coffee  and  cooked 
food." 

In  this  reply  Tokala  read  fresh  evidence  of  her 
answer  to  prayer.  Had  the  priest  and  his  friend 
come  the  same  old  trail  which  she  had  followed  they 
would  have  found  water  and  camped  a  long  time 
since  and  so  she  might  have  been  gone  when  they  had 
reached  this  point.  She  cast  her  eye  up  over  the 
slope  and  saw  that  the  pair  must  have  come  through 
a  gap  to  northward  and  so  joined  her  trail  at  exactly 
the  place  where  she  had  camped  for  the  night.  She 
no  longer  doubted  that  she  should  reach  home  in 
safety  and  find  all  well  among  her  people.  The  in- 
ner light  of  this  joy  was  upon  her  face,  rendering  it 
again  exceedingly  comely,  when  the  priest  brought 
her  face  to  face  with  "Raymond  Bonhomme.  The 
young  trader  had  at  first  appeared  about  to  join  them  ; 
then,  seeing  the  two  apparently  well  acquainted  and 
earnestly  engaged  in  conversation,  he  had  wandered 
to  a  little  distance. 

The  Sioux  girl  prepossessed  in  favour  of  all 
Frenchmen — Wasicunikceka — lifted  her  frank  eyes  to 
the  tall  trader  and  offered  her  hand  with  the  winning 
confidence  of  an  Indian  woman  who  finds  herself 
wholly  in  the  hands  of  friends  in  time  of  need. 

<*  How-how-how ! "  she  exclaimed  softly  and  the 


288       WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE 

trader  inwardly  vowed  that  he  had  never  seen  so  fair 
a  girl  among  the  dusky  tribes. 

"  How,  how,"  he  replied  and,  to  Tokala's  further 
pleasure,  addressed  her  perfectly  in  her  own  tongue. 
She  even  noted  that  he  used  the  soft  L  sounds,  heard 
only  among  Dakotas  who  spoke  the  Teton  dialect. 

"  It  is  the  daughter  of  the  chief  Yellow-Iron  of  the 
Oglalas  ;  "  the  priest  had  said,  "  the  poor  girl  has  been 
captured  and  has  escaped  from  those  rascally 
Crows." 

"  So  you  are  the  daughter  of  my  friend  Yellow- 
Iron,"  said  Bonhomme,  showing  his  white  teeth  in  a 
smile  which  had  entranced  more  than  one  young 
woman  of  her  race.  "  I  do  not  think  those  Oglalas 
who  trade  at  Ft.  Assiniboin  ever  brought  their 
families  ?  " 

"  No  they  did  not ;  "  answered  the  girl,  "  they  had 
to  pass  through  the  enemy's  country  but  they  wished 
to  go  to  your  fort  because  you  gave  them  better  trade 
than  the  Long  Knives  at  Yellow  River." 

Bonhomme's  face  lighted  with  appreciation  of  the 
tribute.  He  was  a  young  man  of  no  more  than  thirty 
years,  but  he  was  known  far  and  wide  for  his  fair 
dealings  in  the  fur  country.  He  was  also  a  good 
Catholic,  trusted  of  father  DeSmet,  and  had  left  clerks 
in  charge  of  his  store  to  go  on  a  mission  for  the 
church.     Nowhere  in  that  wild  country  could  the  lone 


WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE       289 

and  desperate  Sioux  girl  have  fallen  into  better  hands 
than  now  she  had  by  the  merest  of  accidents. 

"  Now  for  coffee  and  meat,"  cried  the  priest  almost 
gaily.  "  I  know  that  Tokala  Noni  is  a  good  cook  and 
she  is  longing  to  give  her  services." 

Together  they  went  to  their  horses,  where  Bon- 
homme  quickly  relieved  a  pack  pony  of  its  burden. 
While  Tokala  built  a  little  fire  of  dry  sticks  the  trader 
brought  forth  a  slender  cooking  kit,  some  meal,  bacon 
and  coffee.  Deftly  Tokala  boiled  a  mush  and  fried 
bacon,  cooking,  as  the  Ogalas  had  long  since  learned, 
the  simple  dishes  of  the  trader  and  trapper.  Father 
DeSmet  made  the  coffee  and  the  three  sat  down  In- 
dian style  to  a  meal  to  which  hunger  gave  a  zest 
quite  unknown  to  the  epicure. 

While  she  had  been  preparing  and  during  the  meal 
Bonhomme's  admiration  for  the  girl  was  manifest  in 
his  eyes.  Though  her  skirt  of  fawnskin  and  her  moc- 
casins were  soiled  and  worn,  her  dress  without  orna- 
ments, and  the  constant  exposure  of  out-of-doors  had 
given  her  skin  the  hue  of  Africa,  she  was  yet  a  hand- 
some creature.  The  perfect  oval  of  her  face,  the 
great  dark  eyes,  a  Greek  nose,  to  be  envied  among 
the  fairest  of  his  race,  the  wide,  beautifully  curved 
lips ;  all  this  appealed  to  the  intelligent  Frenchman's 
love  of  beauty.  Nor  were  the  lithe  figure,  the  small, 
finely-veined  hands — hands  which  might  have  been 


290       WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE 

modelled  as  typical  of  the  most  ancient  breeding — 
the  exquisitely  turned,  round  wrist  and  forearm, 
clasped  by  the  single  ornament  she  wore,  a  bracelet 
of  silver  coins,  less  attractive  than  the  face. 

And  a  womanly  character,  an  absolute  purity  of 
soul,  spoke  in  every  act  and  attitude  of  the  girl. 
Bonhomme's  admiration  was  so  open,  though  wholly 
ignored  of  Tokala,  that  father  DeSmet  soon  attempted 
to  engage  him  in  conversation.  In  this  he  was  partly 
successful  when  the  maiden,  suddenly  leaving  them  at 
their  meal,  went  out  to  her  horse.  That  she  was  in 
haste  to  take  the  trail  homeward  was  evident. 

"  No  wonder  the  poor  girl  is  in  a  hurry ; "  said  the 
father,  "  she  will  in  spite  of  her  apparent  nonchalance 
know  no  ease  of  heart  until  we  have  placed  her  in 
her  father's  lodge.  I  think  indeed,  Raymond,  that, 
in  all  your  experience  among  Indians,  you  have  yet 
much  to  learn  of  Indian  women.  There  are  certain 
tribes  of  the  Sioux,  and  the  Oglalas  are  among  them, 
where  the  girls  are  very  carefully  reared.  That  she 
is  dependent  upon  us — two  men — though  she  utterly 
trusts  us — is  quite  as  poignant  a  situation  for  this 
Oglala  maid,  nay,  even  more  so,  than  if  she  had 
been  bred  in  a  convent  of  your  own  city  of  Mon- 
treal." 

The  covert  reproof  in  this  allusion  was  not  lost 
upon  Bonhomme,  whose  face  went  red  with  embar- 


WHOM   THE  GODS  LOVE       291 

rassment.  He  finished  his  meal  in  silence  not  again 
looking  at  the  girl  who,  when  they  arose  from  the 
meal,  had  already  saddled  and  mounted  her  horse. 
In  silence  the  packing  was  finished  and  the  trio  set 
out  down  the  mountain  trail. 

Tokala  went  ahead  riding  astride,  after  the  fashion 
of  Indian  women,  and  Bonhomme  noted  her  graceful 
and  natural  seat,  her  slim  back  and  perfect  carriage 
and  suddenly  there  came  to  him  the  desirability  of 
securing  this  Oglala  maiden  for  a  wife.  Here  was 
one  perfectly  adapted  to  sharing  the  life  which  fate 
had  marked  out  for  him.  He  had  never  yielded  to 
the  temptation,  so  potent  among  traders,  to  take  a 
dusky  mate  in  the  lawless  and  loose  fashion  of  the 
frontier.  He  had  looked  forward,  ten  or  fifteen  years 
hence,  to  the  time  when  he  should  retire  with  a  com- 
petence, to  a  return  to  his  native  city  of  Montreal 
and  to  marriage  with  one  of  its  fair  daughters,  to  the 
rearing  of  a  family  in  his  old  age,  as  many  another 
trader  had  done.  But  now  he  had  met  with  a  girl 
of  a  wild  tribe  who,  if  she  might  be  converted  to  his 
faith,  would  adorn  his  forted  home  and  leave  him 
free  to  follow  to  the  end  of  life  his  profitable  voca- 
tion. He  was  young  and  the  blood  leaped  in  his 
veins  and  youth  was  the  time  for  marriage !  As  he 
rode  behind  the  priest  his  fancy  could  be  indulged 
without  detection  and  the  more  he  looked  upon  the 


292       WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE 

Sioux  maiden  the  fiercer  became  his  desire  to  possess 
her.  He  would  marry  her  by  the  holy  rites  of  his 
church ;  his  children  should  be  legitimate  heirs  of  his 
fortune.  Father  DeSmet  himself  should  perform  the 
ceremony  of  marriage,  and  the  christenings. 

Why,  after  all,  should  a  man  of  his  sort  wish  to 
wait  until  middle  age  to  marry  some  petted  and 
spoiled  beauty  who  would  very  likely  take  him  for 
the  sake  of  the  wealth  which  would  enable  her  to 
adorn  her  pampered  person  ? 

So  while  they  were  descending  the  mountain 
he  indulged  in  ardent  day  dreams.  And  the  wish 
to  possess  this  fairest  of  Sioux  grew  to  fierce  insistant 
desire. 

Tokala  kept  the  lead,  riding  silently  and  demurely, 
until  they  had  reached  the  flats  of  the  river  valley 
among  the  foot-hills.  Here  the  girl  turned  abruptly  to 
the  left  taking  the  rougher  ground  for  advance  and 
leaving  the  old  trail  they  had  been  following.  The 
priest  halted  and  called  to  her. 

"  Ho,  my  daughter,"  he  said,  "  why  do  you  leave 
the  plain  road  ?  It  is  down  the  river  and  along  this 
old  trail  that  we  must  reach  the  Oglala  villages." 

The  girl  stopped  and  turned  a  confused  face 
toward  her  followers. 

"  I  had  thought,"  she  said,  "  that  it  would  be  best 
for  us  to  go  away  from  this  river.     It  is  now  that  the 


WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE       293 

Absaroke  will  be  hunting  buffalo  and  these  will  be 
found  near  to  the  streams." 

"  I  see  no  signs  of  the  buffalo,"  answered  the  priest 
decidedly,  "  and  I  think  it  will  be  best  for  us  to  keep 
to  a  trail  which  will  insure  us  against  going  astray 
and  the  consequent  loss  of  time.  What  think  you, 
Bonhomme  ?  " 

"  I  think  as  you  do,  father ;  "  replied  the  trader, 
"  we  shall  save  time  by  keeping  the  trail.  Our  friend 
need  not  fear  meeting  the  Crows  in  our  company.  I 
think,  however,  that  there  is  little  chance  of  that,  for 
the  Crows  hunt  toward  the  Yellow  Stone  where 
the  buffalo  are,  at  this  season,  always  more  plen- 
tiful." 

Tokala  could  not  gainsay  this  reasoning.  Re- 
luctantly and  modestly  she  turned  back  and  followed 
her  protectors.  It  was  but  little  time  until  they  came 
upon  the  late  camp  of  the  Sioux  which  Tokala  had 
wished  to  avoid.  Both  the  eyes  of  Father  DeSmet 
and  of  Bonhomme  searched  the  ground  when  they 
came  upon  trampled  earth  where  horses  of  the  recent 
campers  had  been  tethered.  Priest  and  trader  looked 
at  each  other  in  surprise.  It  was  evident  that  a  large 
party  of  Indians  had  recently  left  the  spot.  There 
having  been  neither  rain  nor  dew  their  pony  tracks 
appeared  even  fresher  than  they  were.  These  seemed 
hardly  cold  and  knowing  the  girl  had — from  her  own 


294       WHOM   THE  GODS  LOVE 

account  and  other  evidences — stopped  over  night 
within  sight  of  this  valley  they  were  much  puzzled. 

A  glance  at  Tokala,  too,  showed  both  these  astute 
persons  that  she  had  been  ready  to  conceal  something 
from  them. 

"  She  knew  of  these  campers,"  said  the  priest, 
speaking  in  French,  "and  why  she  should  have 
wished  to  keep  us  in  ignorance  passes  me.  These 
children  of  the  wild  are  very  peculiar.  Do  you  ride 
on  a  little,  Raymond,  while  I  engage  the  girl's  con- 
fidence.    We  must  surely  know  about  this." 

"  Certainly,"  replied  Bonhomme.  "  I,  too,  think  it 
best  that  we  should  know." 

Tokala  was  coming  on  as  though  the  deserted 
camp  had  gone  unnoted  or  was  at  least  of  no  conse- 
quence. DeSmet  waited  a  minute  or  two  and  then 
gave  the  girl  no  chance  of  evasion. 

"  My  daughter,"  he  said,  "  it  appears  that  a  large 
party  of  Indians  have  but  just  broken  camp  here. 
Surely  you  must  have  seen  them  and  perhaps  can 
tell  who  they  were  ?  " 

Tokala  looked  at  the  questioner  earnestly,  her  face 
slightly  flushed  from  the  knowledge  that  she  had  at- 
tempted to  deceive  him.  Then,  seeing  no  subter- 
fuge would  avail,  she  glanced  at  the  trader  inquir- 
ingly. 

"  Let  us  dismount  here  and  be  seated,"  said  the 


WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE       295 

priest,  "  and  you  shall  tell  me  all.  Mr.  Bonhomme 
will  ride  on  a  way." 

Thus  assured  Tokala  got  off  her  horse  and  took  a 
seat.  Father  DeSmet  dismounted  and  sat  opposite 
her.  Tokala  told  him  briefly  all  that  seemed  needful 
to  tell.  She  began  with  the  sun  dance  and  related 
candidly  what  had  happened  to  her. 

When  the  priest  had  digested  this  he  said,  "  My 
daughter,  you  have  had  a  severe  trial  and  the  end  is 
not  yet.  Because  of  you  there  is  about  to  be  battle 
and  bloodshed  and  we  must  see  what  can  be  done  to 
stop  it.  I  should  not  feel  that  I  had  done  my  duty 
if  I  were  to  go  on  and  make  no  effort  to  stay  these 
young  men  from  acts  which  must  end  in  continued 
war  between  your  people  and  the  Crows.  Evidently 
the  Sioux  think  that  you  are  still  a  captive.  You 
must  come  with  us  and  we  must  overtake  them  in 
time  to  delay  a  battle.  This  may  seem  hard  to  you 
but  you  are  with  me,  under  my  protection,  and  I  will 
see  that  no  harm  comes  to  you." 

Tokala  sat  in  deep  thought  for  some  minutes  ;  then 
she  spoke. 

"  I  do  not  wish,"  she  said,  "  that  there  shall  be  war 
about  this  matter.  It  is  too  foolish  and  our  people 
have  never  before  broken  the  peace  of  the  sun  dance. 
If  you  can  get  these  young  men  to  go  home  without 
righting,  I  will  not  stand  in  your  path." 


296       WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE 

"  Rightly  spoken  !  "  exclaimed  the  priest  heartily. 
"  We  will  follow  this  war  party  and  the  trader  and  I 
will  do  our  best  to  keep  you  hidden  from  their  sight 
until  I  have  brought  them  to  reason." 

To  no  other  man  excepting  her  father  would  Tokala 
have  conceded  the  safety  of  her  keeping,  on  such  an 
errand.  She  knew  well  that  no  man  had  so  much 
influence  among  the  tribes  and,  after  again  thinking 
of  the  matter,  she  replied. 

"  What  am  I,"  she  said,  "  that  my  safety  should 
interfere  in  a  matter  of  so  much  importance  ?  If  our 
people  are  not  to  abide  by  the  sacred  peace  of  the 
sun  dance  where  shall  we  look  for  safety  ?  " 

To  the  father  this  argument  was  as  the  vanity  of 
vanities.  He  regarded  the  sun  dance  and  all  its  rites 
as  inventions  of  the  devil ;  still,  he  saw  in  her  con- 
cession the  means  to  an  end  and  refrained  from  com- 
ment. When  one  is  dealing  with  the  heathen  one 
must,  in  a  measure,  adapt  his  means  to  the  heathen 
point  of  view.  This  was  his  philosophy  and  the 
secret  of  his  success  as  a  pacificator — which  on  many 
an  occasion  he  had  proven. 

"  Good,  and  well  spoken,"  he  replied  readily.  "  I 
will  now  talk  with  Mr.  Bonhomme  and  we  will 
speedily  take  up  the  trail  of  this  misled  war-party." 

His  speech  with  Bonhomme,  however,  was  pro- 
longed and  his  plan  not  easily  adopted.     The  trader 


WHOM  THE  GODS  LOVE       297 

felt  no  call,  under  the  circumstances,  in  going  out  of 
his  way  to  prevent  a  fight  between  the  Sioux  and  the 
Crows,  and  especially  to  head  off  a  lot  of  young  hot 
heads  who  were  after  the  very  prize  he  had  begun  to 
covet.  To  attempt  to  stay  the  hand  of  some  hun- 
dreds of  young  Sioux,  bent  upon  reprisal,  seemed  to 
him  a  wild  goose  chase  of  pronounced  type.  Yet 
such  was  the  influence  of  the  devoted  missionary  over 
all  with  whom  he  came  in  contact  Bonhomme  was, 
in  the  end,  prevailed  upon  to  take  up  with  him  the 
trail  of  the  Sioux. 

When  night  fell  the  trio  were  well  on  their  way 
toward  the  Crow  village.  Bonhomme,  after  cogi- 
tating anew  upon  the  folly  of  such  an  undertaking, 
might  yet  have  withdrawn  from  the  pursuit  but  for 
his  growing  interest  in  Tokala.  For  he  reasoned,  in 
the  end,  that  the  Sioux  would  probably  have  met 
either  with  victory  or  defeat  before  they  could  be 
come  up  with.  But  he  was  French  and  mercurial. 
He  had  found  a  woman  to  fit  his  fancy  and  was 
plunged  heels  over  head  in  love. 


XXIV 
MAID   AND   MISSIONARY 

WHEN  their  camp-fire  had  burned  low 
Tokala  wrapped  her  blanket  about  her 
and  faded  into  the  darkness.  Neither 
priest  nor  trader  knew  where  she  slept.  She  returned 
at  daylight  to  find  a  pot  boiling  and  the  men  engaged 
in  a  strange  operation.  They  were  sitting  near  to- 
gether with  a  cup  of  white  foamy  stuff  bet  ween  them. 
They  had  painted  their  chins  with  this  in  a  ridiculous 
fashion.  Each  held  a  small  mirror  in  one  hand  and 
a  knife  with  a  loose  handle  in  the  other,  and  they 
were  running  these  knives  over  their  faces  in  a  seem- 
ingly reckless  fashion.  Tokala  would  not  appear  to 
be  surprised.  Seeing  them  absorbed  in  a  mystery 
she  went  softly  about  cooking  their  breakfast. 

In  a  surreptitious  manner  she  watched  the  busy 
mortals  and  discovered  presently  that  they  were  re- 
moving their  beards  even  with  those  perilous  sharp 
blades.  Much  she  marvelled  but  said  nothing.  She 
turned  her  back  to  the  performance  and  then — oh, 
the  curiosity  of  woman  ! — she  shyly  brought  forth 
her  own  dirk  knife  and,  seizing  the  end  of  a  long 
braid,  drew  the  edge  across  some  loose  hairs  and 
looked  carefully  for  results.     There  were  none.     Ah, 

298 


MAID  AND  MISSIONAKY       299 

these  mysterious  Frenchmen !  how  was  it  that  they 
whetted  their  knives  to  such  an  edge  ?  Must  they 
ever  be  in  advance  of  the  Indian  in  all  things  ? 

When  the  task  of  her  companions  was  completed 
Tokala  noted  that  they  seemed  much  more  pleasant 
and  satisfied  with  themselves.  Doubtless  this  was 
because  their  faces  were  so  smooth  and  shiny  and 
they  thought  themselves  to  be  much  finer  looking 
after  the  removal  of  a  rough,  uncomely  growth.  And 
like  a  woman — since  evidently  they  expected  this  to 
be  noticed — Tokala  utterly  ignored  them  until  the 
mush  was  done  and  the  bacon  and  coffee  ready  for 
consumption. 

Little  was  said  that  morning  for  they  knew  that 
an  exceedingly  hard  day's  travel  lay  before  them. 
They  had  reason  from  appearance  of  the  trail  to  ex- 
pect that  they  could  come  up  with  the  Sioux  by 
nightfall,  if  already  these  were  not  defeated  and 
scattered.  Tokala  as  usual  took  the  lead.  She  was 
so  evidently  possessed  of  a  desire  to  ride  in  advance 
and  out  of  earshot  that  father  DeSmet  marvelled 
somewhat  until  enlightenment  came  to  him  in  an 
avowal  from  Bonhomme.  It  was  mid-forenoon  and 
the  trader  had  ridden  in  a  meditative  silence  which 
the  father,  for  reasons  of  his  own,  had  not  broken. 
Then  Bonhomme  spoke  in  his  own  frank  and  win- 
ning way. 


300       MAID  AND  MISSIONARY 

"  Father,"  he  said,  "  I  wish  to  marry  this  Sioux 
girl  and  to  do  so  in  our  own  way — the  way  of  the 
church.  I  do  not  believe  that  I  shall  ever  be  able  to 
break  loose  from  the  fur-trade  or  at  least  from  trade 
with  the  Indians.  How  fitting  then  that  I  should 
take  a  good  Indian  wife  and  rear  my  children  in  the 
Catholic  fold.  Possibly  I  may  beget  children  who,  in 
later  years,  will  be  able  to  labour  usefully  in  our  In- 
dian missions." 

The  young  man  spoke  with  earnestness  and  en- 
thusiasm and  the  father  took  some  time  to  consider 
his  reply.  Which  way  his  sentiment  lay  in  the  mat- 
ter he  could  doubtless  quickly  have  told  ;  but  he  had 
the  diplomacy  of  his  kind  and  wished  to  make 
such  answer  as  might  work  for  the  good  of  the  in- 
dividual and  the  cause  of  the  church. 

"  Well,  my  son,"  he  said,  at  length,  "  if  you  have 
set  your  heart  upon  this  thing  I  must  e'en  do  the  best 
I  can  for  you ;  but  don't  indulge  too  largely  in  the 
hope  that  you  can  marry  Tokala  Noni — don't  set 
your  heart  too  much  upon  it.  It  may  be  that  we  can 
win  her  to  the  church  through  the  complication 
which  has  made  of  her  a  football  and  a  toss -about 
among  these  wild  folk.  You  do  not  wish  to  marry 
her  unless  she  can  be  converted  ?  " 

"  Her  conversion  to  the  faith  is  certainly  greatly 
to  be  desired,"  admitted  Bonhomme,  "  but  that  will, 


MAID  AND  MISSIONARY       301 

of  course,  if  it  come  not  sooner,  follow  her  mar- 
riage to  me." 

"  Not  necessarily,"  returned  the  priest,  "  and  for 
my  part  I  should  desperately  dislike,  Raymond,  to 
see  you  married  to  a  stubborn  native  woman.  Well, 
well,  I  will  talk  to  her  and  we  shall  see  what  may  be 
the  fruitage." 

"  Question  her  finally  before  me,  father,"  said  Bon- 
homme,  "  I  wish  to  get  her  point  of  view,  if  she  will 
talk." 

The  father  smiled  indulgently.  "  Very  well,"  he 
replied,  "  at  noon  then  I  will  speak  to  the  maid  of 
our  faith." 

Noon  seemed  long  for  the  waiting.  The  trader 
was  of  an  impetuous  turn  even  for  a  Frenchman. 

"  Do  you  go  on,  father,"  he  urged,  "  and  prepare 
the  way  for  what  I  may  say  to  her  very  soon.  I  will 
ride  in  the  rear." 

"  No  laggard  in  love  art  thou,  my  son,"  laughed 
the  priest,  "  but  verily  of  as  hot  blood  as  any  savage 
of  them  all." 

Astute  in  most  affairs  dealing  with  his  Indian 
friends,  DeSmet  had  little  doubt  as  to  the  ultimate 
success  of  the  trader's  wooing.  Fur  traders,  whether 
or  not  they  were  young  and  good  to  look  upon,  were 
accustomed  to  choosing  among  the  comeliest  daugh- 
ters of  the  tribes.    It  was  true  that  girl  or  woman  often 


302       MAID  AND   MISSIONARY 

objected  until  finally  forced,  by  the  influential  of  her 
clan,  to  accept  an  alliance  which  might  mean  much 
of  benefit  to  them.  If  the  daughter  of  Yellow-Iron 
were  not  presently  to  be  won  Raymond  must 
patiently  wait  until  they  had  her  among  the  Oglalas. 
In  the  meantime  if  the  seeds  of  religion  might  be 
planted  in  her  heart  so  much  the  better  for  her 
future  happiness.  Her  clan  was  powerful  among 
Dakotas  and  if  this  maid  could  be  brought  into  the 
fold  the  father  saw  much  advantage  accruing  to  the 
true  church.  To  marry  her  to  Bonhomme  and  to 
plant  in  her  breast  the  sacred  truths  of  religion! 
Sooner  or  later  they  must  succeed  ;  they  could  and 
would  and,  though  the  fruitage  were  not  reaped  in 
his  day,  there  would  be  further  accessions  to  the 
church — other  links  to  bind  the  benighted  ones,  and 
bring  them  within  her  beneficent  embrace.  So  the 
father  rode  blithely  forward  in  a  service  which  de- 
lighted his  soul. 

When  he  came  up  with  her  Tokala  turned  her  face 
and,  seeing  that  the  trader  was  not  joining,  gave  the 
priest  a  shy  smile. 

••  You  seem  cheerful,  my  daughter,"  said  DeSmet, 
"  but  it  is  not  good  always  to  be  alone.  So  the  Mas- 
ter of  Life  has  taught  us  in  His  holy  book.  I  think  I 
have  never  talked  to  you  personally  about  our  holy 
religion.     There  have  been  so  many  duties  when  I 


MAID   AND  MISSIONARY       303 

have  been  with  my  children  the  Oglalas.  I  wish  to 
tell  you  now  the  story  of  Jesus  who  is  Saviour  of  all 
persons  who  will  come  to  Him  after  the  manner  of 
our  communion.  My  daughter,  will  you  incline 
your  ear  to  the  truth  as  I  shall  speak  it  ?  " 

Tokala  remained  thoughtful  for  a  moment;  then 
with  a  candour  which  encouraged  the  priest  she  said  : 

"  I  have  heard  something  of  the  mysteries  of  the 
white  people  but  I  understand  very  little  about  them. 
If  you  wish  to  tell  me  about  your  wonder-workers  do 
so  and  I  shall  listen." 

The  good  father  read  in  this  answer  that  Tokala 
would  have  preferred  to  ride  on  by  herself.  But  the 
claims  of  his  religion  were  above  all  other  considera- 
tion and  he  rejoiced  that  his  overture  had  not  been 
rejected. 

He  began,  as  he  had  begun  with  many  another  of 
the  "  benighted  ones,"  gently,  with  allusions  to  the 
peculiar  beliefs  of  her  own  people  upon  which  he 
refrained  from  casting  any  reflections.  In  many 
ways,  and  by  illustrations  familiar  to  her,  by  the 
great  numbers,  prosperity  and  powers  of  the  white 
people,  he  argued  that  the  true  God  was  not  yet 
known  of  all  men.  To  the  limit  of  attainment  in  the 
Dakota  tongue,  and  Tokala's  understanding  of  it  was 
well-nigh  perfect,  he  made  known  to  her  the  essen- 
tial points  of  his  religion. 


304       MAID  AND  MISSIONARY 

Bonhomme  riding  behind,  noted  the  priest's  ani- 
mated gestures  as  he  warmed  to  his  ever  new  theme 
and  Tokala's  apparently  respectful  attention,  and  his 
elation  mounted  as  the  miles  of  a  dull  trail  were 
covered.  Between  religion  and  love  the  heart  of 
this  beautiful  savage  must  melt.  And  she  was  most 
beautiful  in  her  wild  way.  Once  she  had  embraced 
his  religion  and  had  been  taught  his  language,  which 
most  Indians  learn  easily,  Bonhomme  felt  that  he 
should  be  willing  to  present  her  as  his  wife  even  in 
Montreal  and  Quebec. 

At  noon  came  the  test  of  instruction.  They  had 
finished  a  lunch  of  cold  meat  and  were  to  halt  fur- 
ther for  the  grazing  of  their  ponies  when  the  priest 
turned  to  Tokala  who  would  have  wandered  off  by 
herself. 

"  My  daughter,"  he  said,  "  I  have  told  you  about 
the  Saviour  of  men  as  He  is  known  to  us.  Have 
you  aught  to  say  why  you  should  not  embrace  our 
faith?" 

The  girl  seemed  in  no  way  disturbed  or  surprised 
at  the  question,  but  looked  enquiringly  at  Bonhomme 
as  though  to  know  whether  what  she  might  say  could 
be  of  interest  to  him.  "  He  also  wishes  to  hear  you 
speak,"  said  the  father  and  Bonhomme  smiled  encour- 
agement. 

Tokala   seated  herself,  as  those  do  who  have  a 


MAID  AND  MISSIONARY       305 

story  to  tell,  leaning  slightly  forward,  and  spoke 
equally  without  enthusiasm  or  embarrassment. 

"  Father,"  she  said,  addressing  the  priest,  "  you 
have  been  v^ry  good  to  tell  me  about  your  wakan 
people,  for  I  really  like  to  know  what  other  folk  think 
about  the  mysteries.  It  seems  that  there  are  a  great 
many  trails  to  follow,  in  this,  as  in  hunting  the  buf- 
faloes. I  have  listened  carefully  to  what  you  have 
told  me,  but  it  does  not  appear  that  your  wakan 
people  can  be  of  benefit  to  us  who  live  in  a  different 
way.  I  think  there  are  a  great  number  of  these 
Mysterious  Ones  who  are  wiser  than  we.  If  this  one 
Easu  (Jesus),  to  whom  you  pray,  had  truly  intended 
to  make  himself  the  great  one  of  all  men  he  would 
have  appeared  to  the  Indian  as  well  as  to  the  white 
man.  Doubtless  he  is  a  very  great  person,  living 
somewhere,  but  if  he  is  not  able  now  to  bring  people 
out  of  the  grave  I  do  not  think  that  my  folk  would 
care  to  pray  to  him. 

"  Truly  he  does  not  know  the  Indian  as  you  seem 
to  think ;  "  and  the  girl  looked  at  the  priest  with  an 
earnest  conviction,  the  candour  of  which  was  well- 
nigh  irresistible,  "  he  has  never  in  any  way  spoken 
to  my  people.  We  often  hear  the  voices  of  the  Great 
Mystery,  of  the  thunder  people,  and  underworld  folk. 
The  Most  Mysterious  speaks  to  us,  indeed,  from  the 
clouds,  in  the  trees,  and  by  the  tongues  of  birds, 


306       MAID  AND   MISSIONARY 

animals  and  creeping  things.  Our  hunters  and  our 
warriors  have  often  been  brought  out  of  great  peril 
in  this  way.  You  say,  father,  that  the  great  ones  of 
your  wakan  people  are  only  three ;  that  one  is  a 
father,  one  is  son  and  the  other  a  ghost.  These  are 
indeed  a  very  few  of  the  higher  ones  to  answer 
prayers  of  the  big  villages  of  people  you  have  told 
me  of.  That  is  doubtless  the  reason  they  have  no 
time  to  attend  to  the  Indian. 

"  It  is  true,"  she  continued,  "  that  your  people 
make  many  things  that  we  do  not  have  and  that  you 
brought  to  us  the  mysterious-iron  that  shoots  with 
fire-dust.  But  we  were  better  off  without  these 
things  which  your  coming  has  made  necessary. 
You,  father,  have  always  done  well  by  us,  but  not  so 
with  many  of  the  Long  Knives.  They  have  brought 
to  us  dreadful  diseases  and  the  fire-water  which  des- 
troys mind  and  body.  Did  we  know  where  to  go, 
that  they  are  not,  we  should  yet  leave  our  own 
country  and  flee  from  them  all.  Your  Easu  does  not 
love  the  Indians  as  you  have  thought.  He  allows 
his  children  to  kill  and  rob  our  people.  He  may  be 
very  powerful  but  it  is  plain  that  he  did  not  die  to 
give  life  to  the  Indian." 

Frenchmen,  to  their  honour  be  it  said,  were  not 
associated  in  the  Sioux  mind  with  the  "  Americans," 
or  Long  Knives  ;  hence,  there  was  nothing  in  Tokala's 


MAID  AND   MISSIONARY       307 

talk  to  which  Bonhomme  could  have  taken  upon  him 
to  answer  had  he  inclined  to  do  so. 

While  the  girl  was  speaking  the  priest's  chin  had 
dropped  upon  his  breast  and,  as  neither  of  the  men 
seemed  inclined  to  answer  her,  Tokala  got  up  and 
went  out  to  her  horse.  Bonhomme,  who  had  main- 
tained the  utmost  gravity  while  she  was  speaking^ 
now  turned  a  twinkling  eye  upon  DeSmet.  The 
corners  of  the  trader's  mouth  twitched  and  he  was 
near  to  laughter  at  the  priest's  discomfiture.  Tokala 
had  so  calmly  and  so  convincingly  disposed  of  the 
whole  subject  that  somehow,  when  applied  to  the 
Indian,  it  had  a  finality  for  them  all.  Seeing  DeSmet 
with  downcast  face,  however,  Bonhomme  checked 
his  unseasonable  mirth. 

"  How  could  one  answer  ?  "  he  asked  soberly. 

"  I  could  not ;  "  said  the  father  with  sadness,  "  from 
the  Indian  point  of  view  what  she  said  is  unanswer- 
able." 

Bonhomme  was  surprised  at  this  admission  but  made 
no  comment,  and  the  trio  again  took  up  the  dusty 
trail,  Tokala  in  the  lead. 

****** 

It  seemed  that,  after  all,  the  war-party  were  not 
going  directly  against  the  Crows.  Their  trail  led  to 
south  of  the  range  of  mountains  behind  which  was  the 


308       MAID  AND  MISSIONARY 

big  town  of  the  Absaroke.  Long  before  the  Sioux  had 
come  within  sight  of  the  keenest  eyes  upon  those 
mountain  tops  they  had  turned  into  the  deep  valley 
of  a  river  which  ran  to  the  northwest.  And,  at  the 
fork  of  this  stream  a  little  further  on,  Tokala  halted 
and  waited  for  DeSmet  and  Bonhomme.  She  pointed 
to  the  ground  and  then  to  the  deep-cut  valley  of  a 
branch.  Another  broad  and  fresh  trail  had  joined  the 
one  they  were  following. 

"  Alas,"  exclaimed  the  priest,  "  we  are  too  late. 
The  Crows  will  have  come  upon  them  before  this." 

"  So  it  appears  to  me,  father, "  said  the  trader.  "  I 
think  it's  best  we  should  turn  back  here." 

"  Not  so,"  said  Tokala  and  her  face  was  illumined 
with  joy,  "  this  new  trail  is  indeed  the  trail  of  the  Og- 
lalas  and  my  father  is  with  them.  He  also  has  come 
seeking  me." 

Her  voice  was  calm  and  even,  but  there  was  a  ring 
of  exultation  in  it. 

"  See,"  she  went  on  leading  the  way  a  little  further 
along,  "  these  trails  come  together  here  and  the  new 
one  follows  the  old.  The  Absaroke  could  not  have 
been  so  foolish,  for  the  Dakota  has  always  scouts  in 
the  rear." 

"  True  enough,"  commented  Bonhomme.  "  I  think 
as  she  does,"  he  said  to  DeSmet, "  that  we  have  come 
up  with  a  trail  that  will  fetch  two  war-parties  together. 


MAID  AND  MISSIONARY       309 

And  they're  both  big  companies.  If  there's  to  be  a 
fight  it  would  be  worth  seeing." 

DeSmet  mused  for  a  moment.  "  Why  do  you 
think  these  last  are  your  people  and  that  your  father 
is  with  them  ?  "  he  asked  of  Tokala. 

She  seemed  surprised  at  the  question. 

"  The  Oglalas  have  discovered  those  who  took  me. 
Their  trailers  are  the  greatest  among  Indians,"  she 
answered. 

The  joining  of  the  trails  had  spoken  to  her  as 
plainly  as  we  of  another  world  may  read  an  open 
book.  She  knew  perfectly  now  that  all  the  Oglala  war- 
riors, and  perhaps  some  of  other  tribes  of  Sioux,  were 
out  to  make  reprisal  upon  the  Crows.  They  must 
long  since  have  given  herself  up  for  lost  although 
diligently,  and  at  last  successfully,  they  had  searched 
for  trace  of  her  abductors.  This  trail,  as  she  had 
thought,  had  been  lost  in  the  Sacred  Country.  And 
how  reluctant  must  have  been  her  father  to  believe 
that  any  tribe  could  have  broken  the  truce  of  the  sun 
dance  !  But  the  Oglalas  had  come  upon  the  truth  at 
last.  Farther  than  this  she  was  not  able  to  argue  at 
the  moment.  It  seemed  that  all  the  warriors  of  her 
tribe  were  out  to  avenge  her  capture.  There  was 
evidence  of  perfect  collusion  between  the  two  parties 
whose  combined  trail  she  and  her  companions  were 
about  to  follow.     For  the  rest  she  could  gladly  wait 


310       MAID   AND   MISSIONARY 

until  the  Sioux  were  come  up  with.  Nor  did  she 
doubt  for  a  moment  that  her  people  would  be  success- 
ful in  chastising  the  Crows. 

"  The  Sioux,"  she  said  to  the  father,  "  will  be  very- 
cunning.  They  will  attack  the  Absaroke  from  the 
other  side  of  the  mountains.  We  shall  not  catch  up 
with  them  until  to-morrow  and  to  do  this  we  must 
ride  swiftly." 

"  Let  us  be  off  then  ; "  replied  DeSmet,  "  it  may 
not  yet  be  too  late  to  prevent  a  battle.  When 
Yellow-Iron  and  his  men  shall  know  that  you  have 
come  safely  out  of  the  hands  of  your  captors  they 
will  surely  listen  to  the  good  spirits,  who  have  brought 
you  in  safety  to  me,  and  who  are  urging  us  on  their 
trail  to  prevent  a  useless  shedding  of  blood." 

To  this  Tokala  made  no  answer.  Whatever  she 
thought  she  was  more  than  eager  now  to  reach  the 
camp  of  the  Oglalas.  That  Yellow-Iron  would  insist 
upon  punishing  the  Crows  for  breaking  the  peace  of 
the  sun  dance  and  for  abducting  his  daughter,  was 
doubtless  her  innermost  conviction.  Her  condition, 
first  as  a  helpless  captive  and  next  as  an  uncertain 
wanderer,  the  prey  of  circumstances,  and  finally  as 
dependent  upon  the  white  men  for  protection,  had 
shifted  to  one  of  importance  in  a  large  drama 
likely  to  be  played  and  to  be  played  quickly.  As 
she  rode,  again  in  advance  of  her  benefactors,  there 


MAID   AND  MISSIONARi        311 

was  that  in  her  carriage  which  proudly  spoke  of  her 
new  prestige. 

"  If  ever  there  was  an  Indian  princess,  one  fit  to 
give  dignity  anywhere  to  the  title,  she  is  one," 
declared  Bonhomme  when  the  girl  was  beyond  ear- 
shot. "  Is  she  not,  father,  a  fitting  mate  for  one  in 
my  position  and  shall  I  not  make  some  sacrifice  if 
need  be  to  bring  so  promising  an  addition  to  the 
church  ?  " 

The  father  did  not  answer  for  a  time  and  when  he 
spoke  it  was  in  a  tone  of  monologue. 

11  No,  no,"  he  said,  "  the  girl  is  a  heathen,  inbred  of 
a  thousand  generations.  There  are  Indians  who 
are  amenable,  whom  the  Holy  Spirit  can  touch,  but 
not  these  western  Sioux.  It  will  yet  take  a  genera- 
tion or  two  of  closer  contact  with  our  race  and  finally 
of  savage  despair  to  save  their  souls.  When  the  girl 
saw  her  father's  trail  the  light  of  battle  was  in  her 
eye.  She  will  not  help  us,  Raymond,  she  will  not 
help  us." 

The  trader  did  not  answer  and  the  trio  rode  on, 
following  the  broad  windings  of  a  stream  which  had 
cut  its  valley  deep  into  the  bad-lands  of  an  arid 
region.  An  army  might  have  marched  for  days 
unseen,  except  within  this  hidden  valley.  The  only 
signs  of  life — except  the  trail  they  were  following — 
were   the   crows,    blackbirds    and    magpies,    which 


312       MAID  AND  MISSIONARY 

chattered  at  them  from  the  limbs  of  scattered  cotton- 
woods,  or  an  occasional  brood  of  young  geese 
which  rose  squalling  and  flapped  heavily  away  on 
newly  tried  wings  ;  and  now  and  then,  upon  some 
flat,  the  marmots  of  a  populous  town  shrilled  at  them. 

At  sunset  they  were  yet  some  hours  behind  the 
war-parties.  And  this  though  Tokala's  pony  had 
recovered  from  the  stiffness  in  his  leg  and  she  had 
pushed  their  travel  relentlessly.  When  they  had 
finished  the  evening  meal  father  DeSmet  wandered 
into  a  near-by  grove  for  a  season  of  meditation  and 
prayer.  Tokala  seemed  uneasy  and  inclined  to  re- 
treat for  her  night  bivouac ;  but  Bonhomme  adroitly 
engaged  her  in  conversation  and  she  was  too  polite 
not  to  listen  to  one  to  whom  she  owed  so  much. 
The  trader  had  determined  to  win  her,  despite  her 
attitude  toward  his  religion. 

He  began  to  tell  her  of  his  fort  and  of  the  many 
Indian  tribes  who  traded  with  him.  Speaking  of 
her  father's  visits  to  his  post  he  named  many  of 
her  tribesmen — among  them  uncles  and  cousins  of 
her  own — who,  he  said,  were  his  friends.  He  piled 
dry  sticks  high  upon  their  camp-fire,  lighting  up  a 
broad  area,  to  give  her  confidence.  Then  he  told 
of  many  friends  of  the  Indian  among  those  of 
his  race,  a  great  number  of  whom  had  mingled  their 
blood  with  that  of   their   darker   brothers — only  a 


MAID  AND  MISSIONARY       313 

little  darker,  he  declared — and  how  his  own  people 
once  had  lived  just  as  hers  did  now,  moving  from 
place  to  place  and  subsisting  mostly  upon  fish  and 
game. 

From  this,  and  by  easy  transition,  he  talked  of 
his  trader  friends  and  employees  who  had  married 
Indian  women  and  of  their  children  whom  he  said 
they  loved  quite  as  well  as  Indians  could  love  their 
offspring.  By  the  bright  firelight  Bonhomme  noted 
a  growing  colour  in  the  girl's  face,  as  he  neared  the 
climax  of  his  argument.  She  understood  what  he 
was  about  to  ask  of  her  !  The  trader  might,  with 
becoming  modesty,  have  fancied  that  he  was  not 
uncomely  of  person  and  that,  on  a  number  of  occa- 
sions, the  Sioux  girl  had  looked  at  him  with  shy 
approval.  For  the  moment  his  heart  beat  quickly 
and  he  believed  the  time  had  come  to  make  an 
avowal  to  this  incomparable  Indian  maid. 

"  I  think  you  know,"  he  said  impulsively,  "  what 
is  in  my  heart.  I  wish  to  make  you  my  wife. 
Listen,  you  shall  have  a  lodge  such  as  you  never 
dreamed  of,  and  you  shall  indeed  be  the  wife  of  a 
chief  among  my  people.  You  will  be  in  position  to 
command  of  me  any  favour  which  I  may  do  for  your 
family  or  for  your  people.  Whenever  I  can  help  the 
Oglalas  in  the  struggle  to  retain  their  lands,  and  to 
stay  the  hands  of  those  Americans  whom  you  know 


314       MAID  AND  MISSIONARY 

are  continually  trying  to  seize  their  property,  I  will 
do  so.  What  do  you  say,  Tokala,  beautiful  one, 
shall  we  two  go  through  life  hand  in  hand?" 

Though  she  had  guessed  what  was  finally  to  be 
the  outcome,  Tokala  was  taken  by  surprise  at  his 
sudden  and  impetuous  proposal.  Her  face  which, 
beneath  its  dark  hue,  had  flushed  to  the  colour  of 
crimson,  suddenly  paled,  and  she  sat,  for  a  moment, 
looking  fixedly  into  the  blackness  which  prevailed 
outside  their  fire-lighted  circle.  She  controlled  her 
emotion  by  a  supreme  effort  and  spoke  in  a  calm, 
even  tone,  familiar  to  the  trader. 

11  You  should  not  have  spoken  these  words  to  me," 
she  said,  "  for  what  you  ask  is  not  for  my  ears. 
You  are  a  white  man — I  am  an  Indian — it  is  im- 
possible." 

Her  words  were  as  cold  and  distant  as  the  ap- 
proach of  a  snow-storm ;  her  attitude  and  atmos- 
phere repellent  as  those  of  an  enemy.  Bonhomme 
felt  that  a  barrier  had  risen  between  himself  and  the 
girl  as  impassable  as  a  canon  of  the  Colorado. 

When  she  had  concluded,  Tokalo  arose  calmly 
and  passed  into  the  darkness.  On  the  following 
morning  DeSmet  and  Bohomme  waited  in  vain  for 
her  appearance  at  camp.  She  did  not  come  and 
a  search  discovered  that  she  had,  early  in  the 
night,  taken  the  trail  of  the  Sioux. 


XXV 
AT  THE   WAR   CAMP 

AS  upon  another  occasion  Tokala  was  with- 
out surprise  when  the  first  human  creature 
to  come  within  range  of  her  hungry  vision 
proved  to  be  Keyahanhi.  After  a  night's  travel 
down  the  river-valley — a  night  of  such  terror  as 
she  had  never  felt  in  the  mountains — she  came, 
shortly  after  daylight,  within  sight  of  a  thin  veil  of 
smoke  which  marked  the  Sioux  camp-fires. 

It  truly  seemed  that  her  spirit  had  returned  to  her 
body  out  of  the  valley  of  death.  Her  sudden  reso- 
lution to  push  on  in  the  darkness  had  been  soon 
repented ;  yet,  having  taken  the  trail,  she  would  not 
turn  back.  All  night  she  had  ridden  in  the  black 
shadows  of  the  bluffs,  past  the  vaguely  gaping  maws 
of  gulches  and  coulees,  and  along  the  untraceable 
channel  of  the  river  where  the  sudden  looming  of 
giant  cottonwoods — despite  her  grim  bravery — 
had  seemed  the  certain  embodiment  of  immense 
ghost-women  who  had  once  chased  her  ancestors 
away  from  the  Yellow  River.  The  honk  of  a 
startled  water-fowl  had  been  for  an  instant  the  very 
voice  of  Unktehi,  the  river  monster,  and  the  hoot- 

315 


316  AT  THE  WAR  CAMP 

ing  of  an  owl,  the  shrilling  of  a  locust,  the  near 
yapping  of  coyotes,  familiar  and  beneficent  voices 
in  daylight,  had  set  the  chill  of  fear  tingling  over 
her  body.  For  these  dark,  deep  valleys  are  the 
terror  of  the  Indian  woman  and  child,  being  the 
places  of  tragedy,  and  the  abodes  of  evil  creatures 
which  do  not  come  near  the  firelight  but  lie  in 
wait  to  pounce  upon  unfortunate  wanderers. 

The  Spotted  Fox  had  kept  the  trail  without  her 
aid  and  so,  with  nothing  to  occupy  her  mind,  sur- 
rounded by  shifting  shadows,  weary  and  nervous,  the 
girl  had  endured  that  she  might  escape  from  an  ob- 
ligation and  a  situation  which  had  become  unbear- 
able. The  first  sky-tint  of  morning,  despite  her 
weariness,  had  been  hailed  with  such  joy  as  a  re- 
deemed soul  may  feel ;  and  when,  a  little  later,  she 
saw  the  smoke  of  her  people's  fires  her  twenty-four 
hours  of  almost  continual  travel  sat  upon  her 
lightly. 

Before  she  came  within  sight  of  the  camp,  when 
its  pony  herds  yet  appeared  as  clouds  of  insects  on 
the  bluff  slopes,  a  man  on  horseback  rounded  a  point 
of  timber  and  came  toward  her.  Almost  instantly 
she  knew  it  was  Keyahanhi.  He  had,  in  the  last 
two  years,  grown  much  stronger  in  his  back  and  an 
appliance  which  a  trader  had  taught  him  to  make 
had  enabled  him  to  get  about  more  freely  and  to 


AT  THE  WAR  CAMP  317 

ride  a  horse  with  comfort.  He  had  never  before 
gone  out  with  a  war-party ;  and  so  Tokala  had  not 
thought  of  him  as  being  at  this  camp,  where  she 
was  looking  for  shelter  and  protection  solely  to  her 
father.  As  has  been  said,  however,  she  felt  no  sur- 
prise. The  brother  had  come  to  help  find  her  and 
who  more  quickly  would  avenge  her  wrongs  ? 

His  face  was  lighted  by  an  even  greater  joy  than 
her  own  as  he  approached  at  a  canter.  "  So  you  are 
come  !  "  he  shouted.  "  I  knew  it !  I  knew  it !  I 
arose  at  dawn  to  come  out  and  meet  you.  I  felt  that 
you  were  coming  and  I  knew,  indeed,  that  you  were 
riding  along  this  trail !  " 

Wonderful  as  this  might  seem  to  those  uninitiated 
in  the  mysteries  of  the  wilderness,  Tokala  accepted 
the  brother's  statement  as  of  natural  import. 

"  It  was  the  Most  Mysterious  who  spoke  to  you, 
brother ; "  she  said,  as  they  halted  face  to  face,  "  and 
I  have  prayed  constantly  to  be  delivered  to  my  peo- 
ple in  safety." 

"  Even  so,"  responded  Keyahanhi  looking  deeply 
into  her  eyes.  For  a  moment  he  sat  regarding  her 
and  then  he  spoke. 

"  You  are  yet  a  maiden,  sister  ?  " 

Tokala's  cheeks  were  suffused  with  colour  but  she 
replied  calmly  and  as  to  a  proper  and  rightful  query, 
"  Brother,  I  am  even  as  you  saw  me  last." 


318  AT  THE  WAR  CAMP 

"  Now  may  the  greatly  Mysterious  Ones  be 
praised,"  ejaculated  Keyahanhi,  "  and,  of  a  truth,  will 
your  father  be  glad  to  see  you.  Come,  let  us  hasten 
to  the  lodges  of  our  warriors." 

Side  by  side  they  rode  down  the  valley.  In  time 
the  big  Sioux  camp  lay,  like  a  painted  panorama, 
spread  out  before  them.  More  than  two  thousand 
warriors,  with  no  women  among  them,  were  en- 
camped along  the  reaches  of  the  river.  Though 
they  had  brought  only  teepees  for  sheltering  them  in 
messes  of  ten  to  fifteen,  yet  their  village  seemed  end- 
less in  extent.  No  wonder  they  had  thought  it  un- 
necessary to  conceal  such  a  camp  !  Truly,  thought 
Tokala,  the  Oglalas  had  nothing  to  fear  from  their 
enemies  of  whatsoever  nation.  It  was  apparent  that 
they  were  ready  for  battle  with  any  who  might  be 
hardy  enough  to  come  against  them. 

As  they  jogged  slowly  onward  Tokala  told  briefly 
the  tale  of  her  adventures  and  in  return  learned  from 
Keyahanhi  the  meaning  of  this  vast  assemblage  of 
warriors.  Some  things  were  as  she  had  expected. 
Catches  Eagles  and  several  of  his  young  men  had 
been  first  to  discover  the  trail  of  herself  and  her 
captors,  and  to  follow  this  as  far  as  might  be. 
These  had  returned  and  reported  that  they  had  lost 
trace  of  her  in  the  Sacred  Country  and  that  the 
Cheyennes  had  taken  Yellow-Iron's  daughter ! 


AT  THE  WAR  CAMP  319 

That  cunning  and  wicked  Sans  Arc !  Before 
Keyahanhi  could  go  further  with  his  story  Tokala 
saw  its  sequel.  The  Oglalas  had  been  wrought  into 
a  rage  which  meant  war  upon  those  who  had  broken 
the  peace  of  the  sun  dance.  Two  parties  had 
swiftly  formed  to  go  against  them — one  headed  by 
the  Sans  Arc,  the  other  by  Yellow-Iron.  These  were 
to  keep  in  close  communication  with  each  other  and 
to  meet  the  enemy  as  advance  and  reserve  forces, 
thus  to  leave  no  chance  of  defeat.  Hardly  had  they 
hoped  to  rescue  the  captive  but  only  to  avenge  her 
taking  off.  So  they  had  marched  to  the  country 
of  the  Cheyennes  to  find  these  people  resting  peace- 
fully and  securely  in  their  village  on  the  Little 
Muddy  River.  Determined  that  there  should  be  no 
mistake  in  wreaking  vengeance,  and  that  he  might 
not  incur  by  any  chance  the  odium  of  breaking  a 
sacred  truce,  Yellow-Iron  surrounded  the  town  and 
sent  in  a  courier  to  demand  the  return  of  his 
daughter. 

The  Cheyennes  were  so  evidently  astonished  and 
so  strenuous  in  their  denial  of  guilt  that  it  was 
thought  no  more  than  fair  that  their  village  should 
be  searched.  As  the  Sioux  warriors  outnumbered 
those  of  the  villagers  two  to  one  this  concession  had 
been  the  more  magnanimous.  Then  a  rigid  search 
and  examination  of  individuals  had  failed  to  discover 


320  AT  THE  WAR  CAMP 

any  evidence  that  the  Cheyennes  had  been  guilty  of 
abduction. 

Only  one  among  the  Oglalas  had  misdoubted  the 
faith  and  the  report  of  Catches  Eagles  and  his  party 
and  that  one  was  Keyahanhi  who  had  ventured  to 
say  to  Yellow-Iron,  at  the  outset,  that  he  would  find 
his  daughter  among  the  Crows.  But  Keyahanhi 
had  not  given  voice  to  suspicions  which  he  had  no 
evidence  of  a  tangible  nature  to  support.  He  had, 
because  of  his  occult  powers,  been  allowed  to  accom- 
pany the  party  of  Yellow-Iron.  When  the  Chey- 
ennes, also,  had  declared  their  belief  that  the  Crows 
had  stolen  his  daughter,  the  Oglala  chief  no  longer 
doubted  but  set  out  at  once  to  chastise  the  offenders. 
The  two  war-parties  had  travelled  together  until  they 
came  to  the  mountains  where  Tokala  had  been  in 
hiding,  when  they  had  split  and  gone,  one  on  either 
side ;  and  it  appeared  that,  had  the  girl  stayed  where 
she  was  first  in  hiding,  she  must  have  seen  her  father's 
party  go  by.  The  Oglalas  had  passed  so  near  that 
she  could  hardly  have  missed  them. 

"  I,  indeed,"  said  Keyahanhi,  "  believed  that  you 
were  with  the  Crows ;  but  no  one  would  listen  to  me 
at  first,  and  here  you  are  with  us." 

Tokala  made  no  reply  and  together  they  entered 
the  camp  of  the  Sioux.  When  they  came  in  front 
of  her  father's  teepee  Yellow-Iron  came  out  at  their 


AT  THE   WAR  CAMP  321 

call  and,  seeing  his  daughter  before  him,  raised  his 
hands  above  his  head  and  cried  in  a  loud  voice.  He 
was  not  ashamed  to  weep  before  his  warriors  and  his 
voice  reached  to  the  nearer  teepees  as  he  shouted, 

"  Lo,  my  daughter  is  come  to  us  from  the  village 
of  the  enemy.  Ho,  all  ye  Oglalas,  listen  to  me — the 
lost  is  returned  to  us — let  us  therefore  consider  what 
is  to  be  done."  And  the  braves  gathered  about  in 
scores  to  greet  the  maiden. 

Criers  were  sent  the  length  of  the  long  war-village 
to  proclaim  that  the  chief's  daughter  was  found  and 
that  she  was  returned  to  her  father  even  as  she  had 
been  taken.  It  was  also  told  that  Yellow-Iron  had 
wept  and  no  one  marvelled.  Soon  the  story  of  To- 
kala's  rescue  spread  and  the  chief  men  gathered  in 
council  to  consider  what  should  be  done.  Some 
were  for  reprisal,  for  marching  against  the  Crows  as 
they  had  planned ;  others  argued  that  now  there 
should  be  no  fighting,  that,  though  the  provocation 
were  great,  the  Sioux  were  so  bound  by  the  truce  of 
the  sun  dance  that  they  could  not  avoid  a  breach  if 
matters  were  carried  to  hostilities. 

Among  these  last  Catches  Eagles  was  conspicuous. 
He  was  strenuous  in  urging  upon  his  fellows  that 
they  should  take  the  trail  for  home  or  turn  the  expe- 
dition into  one  of  buffalo  hunting.  His  speech  to  the 
council  touching  the  matter  was  a  model  of  Indian 


322  AT  THE  WAR  CAMP 

eloquence  and  there  were  those  who  marvelled  at  his 
enthusiasm,  his  evident  desire  to  depart  from  the 
enemy's  country  without  a  fight.  Hitherto,  no  one, 
in  all  their  company,  had  seemed  so  anxious  to  meet 
the  Crows  in  battle. 

There  was  but  one  person  present  who  understood 
the  drift  of  the  young  chief's  eagerness  to  be  going 
home  and  this  was  Keyahanhi.  Tokala,  in  her  story 
of  capture,  had  told  the  brother  what  Little  Hand 
had  said.  And  what  she  had  told  had  merely  con- 
firmed the  belief  of  this  marvellous  young  reader  of 
men's  minds. 

Keyahanhi  answered  Catches  Eagles  in  the  council. 

He  arose  slowly,  among  the  open-air  crowds  who 
had  been  summoned  to  take  part  in  the  deliberations. 
Beyond  doubt  his  voice  should  have  been  in  favour  of 
peace  and  all  who  knew  him  were  surprised  at  what 
he  had  to  say. 

"  I  am  aware,"  he  said,  "  that  one  has  spoken  whom 
we  have  highly  honoured.  That  he  who  was  master 
of  ceremonies  at  the  sun  dance  should  counsel  for  the 
sacred  truce  is  not  surprising.  I  believe  that  this 
young  man  was  first  to  strike  the  trail  of  those  so 
wicked  as  to  carry  off  the  daughter  of  one  who  was 
their  host  at  the  sacred  dance.  It  would  seem,  how- 
ever, that  having  found  the  trail  of  these  miscreants 
his  eyes  should  have  been  too  shrewd  to  lose  it.    Be- 


AT  THE  WAR  CAMP  323 

cause  of  this  lack  of  caution  we  went  against  the 
Cheyennes,  and  were  in  danger  of  making  enemies 
of  our  friends  and  allies.  Dakotas,  I  do  not  think 
that  this  young  man's  counsel  is  entitled  to  consider- 
ation. Having  come  thus  far  to  rescue  her,  shall  we 
go  home  and  say  to  our  women,  '  Lo,  Tokala  Noni 
escaped  and  came  to  us,  therefore  we  thought  it  best 
to  hasten  away  from  the  enemy's  country '  ?  We 
have  the  great  count *  of  warriors  present  and  shall 
we  tamely  submit  to  this  insult  and  go  home  without 
knowing  who  is  responsible  ?  Shall  we  allow  these 
Absaroke  to  think  that  we  are  old  women,  not  worthy 
of  account,  if  they  shall  choose  to  steal  from  us  ? 
Can  we  afford  to  go  back  without  demanding  repara- 
tion of  the  wrong  done  to  us  and  to  all  who  took  part 
in  the  sun  dance  ?  Let  us  at  least  call  these  Crows 
to  account.  We  may  not  need  to  fight,  but  we 
ought  to  demand  that  they  shall  deliver  to  us  the 
men  who  carried  off  the  daughter  of  their  host." 

There  was  some  astonishment  at  the  delivery  of 
this  speech.  Keyahanhi  was  a  man  of  influence  and 
his  words  carried  weight.  The  argument  had  all 
been  going  one  way  and  it  seemed  that  the  council 
would  be  dissolved  in  favour  of  going  home.  Now 
the  debate  waxed  fierce  and  one  after  another  warriors 
of  renown  took  part. 

1  One  thousand  or  more. 


324  AT  THE  WAR  CAMP 

Thus  matters  stood  when,  at  her  father's  teepee, 
Tokala  learned  of  the  strenuous  debate — that  Keya- 
hanhi  had  turned  the  tide  of  opinion  in  favour  of 
war!  So  astonishing  this  seemed  that  she  was  at 
first  inclined  to  doubt.  But  the  matter  was  con- 
firmed at  the  midday  meal  and  she  found  herself 
face  to  face  with  a  crucial  test  of  fealty.  Should  this 
great  host  of  warriors  go  against  the  Crow  town 
there  could  be  but  one  outcome — a  large  part  of  the 
villagers,  big  and  little,  must  perish.  Cloud  Chief, 
successful  as  he  had  been  in  war,  could  have  little 
chance  against  the  sudden  onslaught  of  so  mighty  an 
army. 

All  the  available  warriors  of  the  Oglalas  and  the 
Sans  Arcs  were  present  and  with  them  the  flower  of 
the  Cheyennes.  So  great  a  camp  of  soldiers  had 
never  been  seen.  The  Crows  were  many  but  Tokala 
knew  that  their  fighting  force  was  nowhere  near  so 
great  as  that  which  had  gathered  in  her  rescue. 
Though  her  lover  had  been  miraculously  successful 
in  war  Tokala  felt  that  he  could  not  stand  against 
such  a  company.  Then,  too,  she  had  that  faith  in 
her  father  which  every  faithful  Sioux  daughter  must 
have  in  a  sire  who  had  won  so  many  victories. 

When  she  had  seen  what  a  force  he  had  summoned 
to  her  rescue  her  elation  had  been  very  great  and 
her  present  position  was  one  of  such  importance  as 


AT  THE  WAR  CAMP  325 

seldom  falls  to  the  lot  of  an  Indian  woman.  Yet  she 
proved  a  veritable  woman  and  conflicting  emotions 
overcame  her.  She  attempted  to  eat  but  the  meat 
choked  her  and  she  arose  hastily,  longing  for  some 
retreat  where  she  might  indulge  her  grief  without 
attracting  notice.  As  she  could  think  of  no  place 
for  hiding  she  sank  upon  a  robe  and  buried  her  face 
in  her  hands. 

Yellow-Iron  glanced  at  her  in  surprise.  He  had 
been  talking  with  Keyahanhi,  commending  his 
nephew  for  the  stand  he  had  taken  and  declaring 
that  for  himself  he  would  not  return  to  his  own 
country,  until  just  reprisal  had  been  made  upon  the 
faithless  Crows.  He  was  like  most  of  his  kind  re- 
specting the  troubles  of  women  and,  seeing  that 
Tokala  was  grieving  about  something,  thought  it  the 
part  of  wisdom  to  ignore  her. 

Keyahanhi  remained  in  the  teepee  after  Yellow- 
Iron  had  departed  for  the  council  which  was  to  con- 
vene immediately.  Her  father  was  no  sooner  gone 
out  than  Tokala  arose  and  turned  a  face  of  anger 
upon  the  brother. 

"  You  have  made  a  fine  use,"  she  stormed,  "  of  the 
confidence  I  gave  you  this  morning.  Lo,  you  have 
stirred  all  this  company  to  war  against  the  Crows 
when  one  of  our  own  faithless  and  lying  chiefs  alone 
is  to  blame.     Why  should  there  be  killing  of  people 


326  AT  THE   WAR  CAMP 

and  innocent  ones  because  of  such  a  poor  creature  as 
one  Dakota  maiden  ?  It  was  one  of  our  own  nation 
stirred  those  young  men  to  take  me  captive ;  and 
why  should  you  counsel  a  silly  quarrel  against  the 
Absaroke  ?  " 

Keyahanhi  bore  this  swift  accumulation  of  re- 
proaches with  the  utmost  patience  and  good  humour. 
His  reply  was  characteristic. 

"  Wait,  sister,"  he  said  mildly,  "  only  be  patient 
and  you  shall  see  to  what  end  I  have  talked.  The 
good  spirits  have  indeed  spoken  to  me  and  they 
have  told  me  that  there  will  be  no  war  with  the 
Crows.  And  now  I  see,  out  of  the  tiyopa,  that 
your  friends  Holy  Hand  and  the  trader  have  ar- 
rived. We  shall  have  much  debating  and  I  must  be 
going." 

Tokala's  faith  in  Keyahanhi  was  great  and  his 
words  gave  her  much  comfort.  She  was  now 
aggrieved  that  she  had  chided  him. 

As  Keyahanhi  had  prophesied  the  arena  of  de- 
bate was  a  heated  one  that  afternoon.  The  Indian 
orator  loves  an  audience  and  when  the  interest  is 
great  enough  to  secure  a  large  number  of  hearers  and 
to  hold  them  he  is  ready  with  harangue.  DeSmet, 
while  he  had  been  greeted  cordially  among  the  In- 
dians and  had  received  the  acknowledgment  of 
Yellow-Iron  and  other  relatives  of  Tokala  for  the 


AT  THE  WAR  CAMP  327 

service  he  had  rendered,  found  himself  quite  de  trop 
in  an  attempt  to  stay  the  trend  of  debate. 

He  asked  to  talk  and  the  chiefs  treated  him  re- 
spectfully— said  "  Han !  Han ! "  in  approval  and  then 
their  orators  ignored  his  remarks,  no  reference  being 
made  to  them  in  the  speeches  which  followed. 

When  night  came  the  voice  of  council  had  decided 
in  favour  of  reprisal  and  elated  young  warriors  began 
to  busy  themselves  getting  their  saddles,  weapons 
and  trappings  into  order;  and  they  strutted  and 
swaggered  after  the  manner  of  callow  soldiers.  In 
the  morning  they  would  march  upon  the  Crow  town 
and,  trusting  in  their  numbers,  would  send  in  a  run- 
ner to  demand  of  the  Absaroke  delivery  of  all  offend- 
ers against  the  law  of  the  sun  dance.  If  the  Crows 
should  prefer  to  fight  there  would  be  such  a  battle  as 
the  survivors  might  recount  with  pride  to  the  end  of 
their  days. 

So  the  war-drums  beat  high  and  they  danced  the 
"  No-flight "  dance,  and  the  valley  was  filled  with 
the  advance  thunders  of  war.  Keyahanhi  had  told 
Yellow -Iron  privately  of  the  treachery  of  Catches 
Eagles  and  the  weight  of  the  old  chief's  influence 
had  prevailed.  When  they  were  before  the  village 
of  Cloud  Chief  the  Sans  Arc  should  be  proven  and  if, 
as  they  felt  certain,  he  were  guilty  he  should  be  sur- 
rendered to  the  mercies  of  the  Absaroke.     As  these 


328  AT  THE   WAR  CAMP 

should  deal  with  him  well  and  good.  It  was  certain 
that  he  must  remain  an  outlaw  among  Dakotas — an 
example  for  those  who  should  again  be  tempted  to 
tamper  with  the  truce  of  the  sun  dance.  Tokala, 
informed  of  this  decision,  slept  well  despite  the 
noise  of  the  camp.  Truly  of  wondrous  wisdom  was 
Keyahanhi ! 

But  neither  the  wisdom  of  that  young  man,  nor 
of  the  mature  heads  who  had  lavished  the  treasures 
of  oratory  in  their  long  debate,  were  of  any  avail. 
The  vexed  question  of  responsibility  for  an  unpre- 
cedented act  of  broken  faith  was  settled  by  one  who, 
yet  in  his  youth,  had  proven  himself  the  greatest  of 
Dakota  warriors. 

At  dawn  the  deeply  somnolent  warriors,  resting  in 
the  security  of  numbers,  were  aroused  from  their 
blankets  by  the  penetrating  quality  of  a  single  voice, 
launched  at  them  from  the  bluffs  and  which  seemed 
to  fill  the  whole  valley. 

"  Ho  !  Ho  ! "  shouted  those  Oglalas  who  first  were 
awakened,  "  it  is  the  voice  of  Koska  of  the  Brules  ! " 
and  Sioux  and  Cheyenne  were  aroused  to  discover 
clouds  of  warriors  sitting  in  groups  upon  the  near 
bluffs.  And  the  allies  suddenly  realized  that  the 
matchless  chief  of  the  Crows  had  secured,  without 
alarming,  every  scout  they  had  out  on  the  hills,  that 
he  might  have  descended  upon  them  as  they   slept 


AT  THE  WAR  CAMP  329 

with  a  slaughter  unknown  in  their  annals  of  war. 
Their  chagrin,  as  they  gazed  upon  those  squads  of 
horsemen,  was  as  poignant  as  any  emotion  the  bar- 
baric may  feel.  As  they  gathered  their  weapons  or 
ran  for  their  horses,  the  chief  of  the  Crows  left  a 
party  of  his  fellows  and  rode  out  upon  a  spur  of  bluff 
until  he  sat,  looking  down  upon  the  nearer  lodges,  at 
little  more  than  a  bow-shot's  distance. 

He  raised  his  hand  to  command  attention  and 
when  hundreds  stood  open-mouthed  he  began  to 
speak  in  a  voice  which  none  could  imitate.  Every 
ear  was  bent  to  listen. 

"  Ho !  Ye  Dakotas  and  Cheyennes,"  he  shouted, 
"  you  are  come  on  an  errand  which  does  you  honour 
— but  ye  are  come  out  upon  false  information  of  your 
scouts.  There  is  one  among  you  who  is  a  liar  and  a 
breaker  of  the  sacred  peace.  I  speak  of  Catches 
Eagles,  your  master  of  ceremonies,  whom  I  pro- 
claim as  a  vile  skunk  who  induced  my  young  men  to 
do  a  stroke  of  treachery.  Those  who  did  his  bid- 
ding are  with  me,  fast  bound,  ready  to  be  turned 
over  to  you  when  I  have  met  this  faithless  snake  of 
the  Sans  Arc  in  a  single  fight  to  be  witnessed  of 
your  warriors  and  mine.     What  say  ye  ?  " 

And  up  from  the  mouth  of  Sioux  and  Cheyenne 
went  a  mighty  roar  of  approval. 


XXVI 
THE   TEST   OF   COMBAT 

THOUGH  Catches  Eagles  had  sought  to 
turn  back  the  allies  he  proved  no  craven. 
When  the  shouts  of  the  valley  forces  had 
subsided  he  walked  toward  the  Crow  chief  and 
mounted  a  little  knoll. 

"  Listen,  you  half-breed  Crow,"  he  shouted,  "  you 
were  thrust  out  from  your  own  people  because  of 
your  filthy  imaginings.  You  were  not  fit  to  look 
upon  their  maidens.  You  are  a  traitor  and  liar  and  I 
shall  cut  out  your  poison  tongue  and  feed  it  to  the 
dogs."  His  unflinching  defiance  was  greeted  with 
whoops  of  approval. 

"  Hau — hau — hau  !  "  answered  Cloud  Chief,  when 
he  could  make  himself  heard,  "  you  indeed  talk 
something  like  a  man,  whereat  I  wonder  much  that 
so  brave  a  voice  issues  from  such  a  crawling  thing. 
When  the  sun  is  two  hands  high  then  let  us  meet 
at  yonder  little  turn  of  the  river.  Let  us  fight  on 
horses  and  bring  only  the  knife  and  let  him  be 
roasted  alive  who  does  an  act  of  treachery.  Is  it 
well?" 

"  Even  as  you  say,  poltroon  and  apostate  !  "  yelled 

330 


THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT         331 

the  Sans  Arc,  "  with  any  weapon  you  may  choose 
and  in  whatsoever  manner  I  shall  feed  your  heart 
and  tongue  to  the  coyotes  ! " 

"  He  has  a  sting  in  his  tongue,"  said  the  older  men 
and  his  brave  words  were  highly  applauded. 

Catches  Eagles  had  met  the  supreme  test  of  a 
warrior's  courage  and  there  were  few  who  did  not 
frankly  admire  his  generous  acceptance  of  the 
enemy's  terms. 

In  his  teepee  Yellow-Iron  expressed  his  satisfac- 
tion at  this  turn  of  events.  "  It  is  best  so ; "  he 
declared,  "  thus  shall  we  settle  who  is  to  blame  in 
this  scandal  and  there  will  be  the  fewer  widows  and 
orphans  among  us." 

Tokala  looked  long  and  earnestly  at  Keyahanhi. 
"  Be  of  good  cheer,  sister,"  he  counselled,  "  the 
Great  Mystery  will  attend  to  it  that  the  guilty 
shall  suffer.  The  Most  Mysterious  is  wiser  than 
all  of  us  and  justice  will  be  done." 

With  this  answer  she  was  fain  to  be  content 
though  she  knew  that  her  lover  had  been  put  to 
needless  peril.  The  faithless  one  should  have  been 
punished  at  no  one's  risk  but  since  Cloud  Chief 
had  taken  the  matter  upon  himself  it  ill  became 
her,  who  had  so  many  times  refused  to  share  his 
lot,  to  repine  at  the  fateful  chance  of  combat. 

A  morning's  meal  was  eaten  with  the  hosts  en- 


332         THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT 

camped  on  opposite  flats  of  the  valley ;  after  which 
preparations  for  the  fight  and  its  witnessing  went 
on  as  calmly  and  as  inexorably  as  the  brewing  of 
a  storm.  When  the  "  sun  was  two  hands  high " 
the  crowds  gathered,  the  Sioux  and  Cheyennes 
upon  one  side  of  the  river  and  the  Crows  upon  the 
other.  The  loop  of  river-bend  which  Cloud 
Chief  had  chosen  for  the  duel  was  a  natural  arena. 
On  either  side  smooth  flats  overlooked  the  treeless 
spot  and  upon  these  higher  grounds  there  was  area 
for  horsemen  to  sit  in  semi-circular  groups. 

The  priest  at  his  little  camp,  viewing  sadly  this 
preparation,  said  to  Bonhomme :  "  Come,  Raymond, 
let  us  be  going.  It  is  not  for  us  to  countenance  this 
savage  contest.  There  may  be  fighting  among  them 
all  at  the  finish." 

"  Do  you  ride  on,  father,  if  you  must ; "  replied  the 
trader,  "  this  business  interests  me  too  much  to  go 
tamely  away.  Let  me  see  the  fellows  fight.  It  will 
be  a  brave  show." 

DeSmet,  upon  reflection  that  his  offices  might  avail 
in  some  possible  contingency,  decided  to  remain. 
As  the  wild  troops  gathered  the  white  men  took  po- 
sition and  stood  looking  on  until  the  end  of  the 
drama. 

When  the  forces  were  grouped  upon  the  elevations 
and  all  was  ready  for  the  fray,  there  was  a  falling 


THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT  333 

apart  among  the  Crows  and  their  chief  rode  through. 
Behind  him,  free  and  unbound,  came  seven  Sioux  and 
Cheyenne  scouts  whom  his  men  had  captured  during 
the  night.  These,  amid  general  acclamation,  were 
allowed  to  cross  the  river  and  take  their  place  among 
their  fellows.  Cloud  Chief  astride  his  war-pony  and 
wearing  a  noble  head-dress,  halted  upon  the  fighting 
ground.  In  a  brief  time  the  Sioux  also  broke  ranks 
to  make  way  for  their  champion.  He  crossed  the 
stream  singing  his  war  chant.  He  wore  a  war-bon- 
net of  red  eagles'  feathers. 

His  chant  was  loud  and  boastful,  and  he  halted 
when  near  to  his  enemy.  "  I  am  come  out,"  he 
cried,  "  to  meet  this  renegade  Brule,  traitor  to  his 
tribesmen,  who  accuses  me  of  breaking  the  truce  of 
the  sun  dance.  You  shall  see  that  he  is  a  liar  and, 
for  all  the  reputation  he  has  won,  a  woman  and  a 
weakling ! " 

"  You,  indeed,"  replied  Cloud  Chief, "  talk  very  big 
and  seem  to  think  yourself  somewhat  of  a  man ! 
Come  on,  snake  of  a  Sans  Arc  who  dare  not  capture 
a  girl  whom  our  boys  seized  at  your  bidding.  Let 
us  have  less  of  vain  talk  and  something  of  fighting." 

Instantly  Catches  Eagles  spurred  his  horse  forward 
and,  drawing  his  knife,  closed  with  his  adversary.  It 
was  a  bold  and  swift  attack.  The  pony  of  the  Crow 
chief,  held  tightly  to   the  rein,  reared  against  the 


SU         THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT 

charger  and  was  nearly  thrown  from  its  feet  in  the 
shock.  The  men  leaned  toward  each  other  as  their 
horses  reared  and  their  knives  clicked  and  rasped  as 
they  parried  swift  strokes.  In  the  end  Cloud  Chief 
was  borne  backward  and  his  mount  well  nigh  lost  its 
footing  but,  in  the  same  instant,  he  struck  the  Sans 
Arc's  horse  upon  its  muzzle  and  the  animal  swerved 
aside.  As  a  result  of  the  first  encounter  blood  trickled 
from  a  slight  wound  upon  the  Crow  chief's  forearm. 

The  Sans  Arc  had  mounted  a  vicious  pony,  one 
well-known  as  a  fighter — a  kind  of  raging  creature 
which,  perforce  obeying  bit  and  spur,  would  seek 
to  wreak  vengeance  upon  the  object  ridden  against, 
whether  this  were  horse  or  buffalo.  The  blow  which 
Cloud  Chief  had  delivered  with  the  handle  of  his 
knife  served  only  to  enrage  the  brute.  Of  its  own 
accord  the  animal  launched  itself  at  the  Crow  chiefs 
horse,  with  open  mouth  and  slapping  forehoofs.  Such 
action  gave  the  Sans  Arc  a  plain  advantage ;  for  the 
other's  pony,  taken  by  surprise  and  unused  to  such 
tactics,  reared  and  wheeled  trying  to  avoid  the  attack. 
Cloud  Chief  was  forced  to  give  ground  and  fight  for 
control  of  his  mount.  As  he  wheeled  and  circled  a 
shout  went  up  from  the  Sans  Arc's  adherents.  It  was 
plain  that  their  man,  assisted  by  his  horse,  was  about 
to  win.  In  a  swift  rush  his  knife  had  gleamed  across 
the  face  of  the  Crow,  who  had  to  throw  himself  back- 


THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT         335 

ward  to  avoid  the  blade.  Had  Catches  Eagles  had 
control  of  the  rein  all  would  have  been  over  in  that 
stroke. 

The  two  again  faced  each  other  for  a  breath. 
"  Hau  !  hau  !  "  shouted  Cloud  Chief,  "  it  appears  that 
I  must  fight  both  you  and  your  crazy  horse.  Come 
on,  you  mangy  dog  !  " 

"  Coyote  !  snake !  traitor  and  liar !  "  yelled  his  ad- 
versary, and  again  launched  his  fighting  pony.  The 
horse  of  Cloud  Chief  became  well  nigh  unmanageable 
in  this  third  attack  and  ran  backward,  in  spite  of  spur 
and  voice,  while  the  rider  literally  thrust  off  its  op- 
ponent at  the  point  of  his  knife.  Again  the  two 
wheeled  and  circled  and  came  to  a  brief  stand,  Catches 
Eagles  holding  his  plunging  horse  with  difficulty. 

The  faces  and  eyes  of  the  fighters  were  ablaze. 
"  Get  off  that  beast  and  fight  on  foot,  you  snake,  or  I 
will  cut  his  eyes  out,"  said  the  Crow  chief,  and  his 
words  were  like  the  stroke  of  a  quirt. 

By  this  time  there  was  an  uproar  among  the 
Crows  who  were  clamouring  for  the  Sioux  to  get 
another  horse.  This  was  answered  by  yells  from 
the  Sans  Arcs.  "  Go  after  him  ! "  "  Give  him  no 
rest !  "  "  Ride  him  down  ! "  "  You've  got  him 
scared ! " 

And  afresh  the  Sioux  launched  his  vicious  pony. 
With  open  jaws  and  squealing  with  rage  the  brute 


336         THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT 

charged.  By  a  supreme  effort,  reins  in  one  hand  and 
fiercely  plying  the  spurs,  Cloud  Chief  held  his  mount 
against  the  attack.  The  horses  reared  in  the  shock 
and,  as  the  Sans  Arc's  pony  buried  its  teeth  in  the 
neck  of  his  own,  the  Crow  chief  planted  his  knife  be- 
tween the  eyes  in  a  stroke  which  drove  the  blade 
half  way  to  its  hilt.  Horse  and  rider  went  down  and 
the  air  was  rent  with  whoops  of  approval  from  Crow 
and  Sioux  alike.  It  was  a  mighty  stroke,  a  deed  of 
arms  to  have  won  applause  in  the  days  of  St.  John  of 
Acre. 

As  the  Sans  Arc  got  to  his  feet  Cloud  Chief  dis- 
mounted and  it  was  then  seen  that  he  held  only  the 
hilt  of  a  knife  in  his  hand.  He  flung  the  useless 
thing  away  and  a  roar  went  up  from  the  followers  of 
the  Sioux  while  the  Absaroke  shouted  to  their  man 
to  run — to  beat  his  enemy  to  the  point  of  starting ! 
This  would,  after  he  had  put  himself  on  foot  and  so 
upon  equality  in  a  race,  have  justified  him  of  all  pres- 
ent and  have  fitted  him  to  take  up  the  quarrel  anew. 

But  he  threw  off  his  war-bonnet  and  stood,  in  the 
tense  attitude  of  a  wrestler,  waiting  for  the  tackle. 
The  Sans  Arc  had  repressed  an  open  demonstration, 
but  his  face  was  lighted  with  a  fierce  and  confident 
joy.  He  had  the  hated  rival  at  his  mercy.  To  have 
hesitated  when  the  man  was  weaponless,  yet  defiant, 
would  have  set  the  seal  of  cowardice  upon  him.     As 


THE  TEST  OF   COMBAT  337 

it  was,  the  Crow  chief  had  suffered  the  chance  of  bat- 
tle, and  no  man's  hand  would  be  lifted  to  assist  him. 
He,  Catches  Eagles,  had  the  right  to  deal  with  his 
foe  in  any  manner  he  should  choose. 

He  cast  aside  his  head-dress,  laughed  a  cruel  laugh, 
and  approached  with  knife  drawn  for  a  stroke.  He 
circled  warily  about  the  chief  to  break  his  guard  of 
defense  and  then  darted  in.  Instead  of  waiting  Cloud 
Chief  leaped  to  meet  his  enemy  and,  disregardful  of 
the  knife,  closed  with  him  in  a  seemingly  reckless 
fashion.  Catches  Eagles'  blade  went  too  far  in  the 
stroke  and  the  two  were  seen  in  a  locked  hold,  writh- 
ing together  as  wrestlers,  and  the  Crow's  arms  were 
gripped  clean  about  those  of  his  adversary  in  a  hug 
which  for  the  instant  pinned  them  uselessly.  Then 
as  they  whirled  about,  tripping  at  each  other,  the 
Sans  Arc  was  seen  turning  his  knife  upon  the  other's 
back.  Apparently  the  fight  could  have  but  one  end- 
ing and  must  be  over  with  quickly. 

Keyahanhi,  sitting  his  horse  near  to  Yellow-Iron, 
groaned  in  spirit.  Could  it  be  that  he  had  been  mis- 
taken in  the  voices  of  the  Most  Mysterious  ?  Yel- 
low-Iron, himself  the  impartial  judge,  said,  "  Hau  ! 
it  appears  that  the  Crow  lied." 

Then  a  marvellous  thing  happened.  The  Crow's 
hands  went  down  in  a  lightning  movement  and  the 
Sans  Arc's  arms  were  swept  apart  with  the  adversary 


338         THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT 

grasping  both  his  wrists.  The  grip  of  steel  was 
Cloud  Chief's.  Slowly,  as  his  body  writhed  to  free 
them,  Catches  Eagles'  hands  were  borne  upward  and 
over  his  head.  Suddenly  the  chief's  leg  was  inter- 
locked with  his  ;  there  was  a  backward  wrench  and  his 
knife  dropped  from  the  Sans  Arc's  nerveless  fingers. 
And,  with  a  dislocated  shoulder,  he  was  flung  con- 
temptuously upon  his  back. 

No  man  had  ever  seen  the  like — a  feat  of  strength 
and  dexterity  matchless — and  the  yells  of  the  hosts 
of  onlookers  touched  the  clouds. 

Not  deigning  to  pick  up  the  weapon  of  his  fallen 
foe  Cloud  Chief  strode  to  his  horse  and  unwound  a 
lariat  which  wrapped  its  saddle  pommel.  He  made  a 
noose,  as  his  adversary  arose,  faint  from  pain  and 
dizzy  from  a  hard  fall.  He  halted  in  front  of  Catches 
Eagles  and  the  latter,  gathering  his  wits,  spoke : 

"  Do  with  me  as  you  will; "  said  he,  "I  am  a  de- 
feated man  and  at  your  mercy." 

The  Crow  chief  cast  his  rawhide  over  the  other's 
neck  and  drew  it  taut. 

"  Come,"  he  said,  "  I  will  do  nothing  further  to 
you." 

The  vanquished  followed  and  the  Crow  led  him 
across  a  shallows  and  mounted  the  opposite  bank. 
He  walked  slowly  leading  his  prisoner  in  front  of 
Yellow- Iron  to  whom  he  passed  the  rope. 


THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT         339 

"  Here,"  he  said, "  I  bring  your  young  man ;  let  the 
daughter  of  Yellow-Iron  say  what  shall  be  done  with 

him." 

Again  the  sky  was  rent  with  tumult  of  applause 
and  all  stood  at  attention  while  Cloud  Chief 
crossed  the  stream,  picked  up  his  discarded  accou- 
trements, and,  leading  his  horse,  walked  back  to  his 
company. 

"  Take  these,"  he  said,  "  I  have  no  longer  any  use 
for  them."  He  then  wheeled  and  returned  to  the 
Sioux,  wearing  only  a  loin  cloth. 

"  I  came  among  you  naked  at  the  first,"  he  said, 
"  and  naked  I  return  to  you.     I  am  a  Dakota." 

The  Sioux  were  astonished  at  his  action  but  their 
appreciation  was  manifest  in  the  shouts  of  approval 
which  alone  could  voice  it  and  which  swelled  to  a 
demonstration  of  supreme  delight. 


*  * 


■* 


While  these  things  were  happening  Tokala  sat  in 
her  father's  teepee,  her  head  muffled  in  a  blanket. 
When  Keyahanhi  returned  and  told  her  of  the  out- 
come of  the  duel  she  got  up  quietly,  saying  nothing, 
and  went  about  preparing  the  noon-meal. 

That  evening,  after  a  conference  with  the  brother, 
she  was  alone  again.  When  darkness  came  on  she 
heard  one  chanting  plaintively  outside  the  lodge. 
She  recognized  the  voice  of  the  victorious  singing  of 


340         THE  TEST  OF  COMBAT 

his  love  for  her.  And,  presently,  she  threw  aside  the 
tiyopa  and  went  out  carrying  a  robe  of  her  father's. 
Her  lover  was  seated  in  front  of  the  teepee,  and  just 
as  he  had  surrendered  himself  to  his  tribesmen.  To- 
kala  approached  and,  leaning  over  him,  wrapped  the 
robe  about  his  naked  body. 

"  My  beloved,"  she  said,  "  the  night  is  chill,"  and 
then,  as  he  lifted  his  head  to  voice  his  thanks,  she 
stepped  back  and  spoke  again. 

"  Wait,"  she  said,  and  returned  to  the  lodge.  She 
threw  open  the  tiyopa  and  let  the  firelight  shine  upon 
him.  In  a  moment  she  returned,  bearing  a  bundle  in 
her  arms.  She  cast  at  his  feet  a  war-shirt  and  leg- 
gings and  a  head-dress,  painted  in  such  cunning 
figures  as  only  Keyahanhi  could  have  traced.  On 
top  of  these  she  cast  a  bow  and  arrows,  a  hatchet  and 
knife. 

"  These  are  your  war-clothes  and  your  weapons," 
she  said,  "  the  gift  of  my  brother  Keyahanhi,  who  is 
not  a  warrior  but  who  has  carried  these  things  be- 
cause of  a  spirit  warrior  who  rides  at  his  side  and  who 
has  promised  to  fight  for  him.  A  pony  and  saddle 
which  my  father  owes  to  you  will  be  delivered 
in  the  morning.  And  now,  if  you  choose,  you  may 
come  inside  our  lodge." 

THE   END 


A  tale  of  the  "Robinson  Crusoe1''  or  "Treasure  Island'"  type, 
•with  an  individuality  all  its  own. 

By  NORMAN  DUNCAN 

The  Adventures  of 
Billy  Topsail 

Third  Edition.    Illustrated,  $1.50 

A  ripping  story  of  adventure  by  sea  is  regarded 
by  every  true-hearted  boy  as  the  very  best  story 
of  all.  The  yarn  —  that's  the  thing!  If  the 
sea  is  a  northern  sea,  full  of  ice  and  swept  by  big 
gales,  if  the  adventures  are  real,  if  the  hero  is  not  a 
prig,  if  the  tale  concerns  itself  with  heroic  deeds  and 
moves  like  a  full-rigged  ship  with  all  sail  spread  to  a 
rousing  breeze,  the  boy  will  say  "  Bully !"  and  read 
the  story  again.  "The  Adventures  of  Billy  Top- 
sail ' '  is  a  book  to  be  chummy  with.  It  is  crowded 
with  adventure,  every  page  of  it,  from  the  time 
young  Billy  is  nearly  drowned  by  his  dog,  until  in  a 
jig  blizzard,  lost  on  an  ice-floe,  he  rescues  Sir  Archi- 
bald's  son,  and  the  old  Dictator  weathers  the  gale. 
There  is  «< something  doing"  every  minute — 
something  exciting  and  real  and  inspiring.  The  book 
is  big  enough  and  broad  enough  to  make  Billy  Top- 
sail a  tried  friend  of  every  reader — just  the  sort  of 
friend  Archie  found  him  to  be.  And  Billy  is  good 
company.  He  is  not  a  prig;  he  is  a  real  boy,  full  of 
spirit  and  fun  and  courage  and  the  wish  to  distinguish 
himself.  In  a  word,  as  the  lads  say,  he's  "all  right, 
all  right!"  He  sails,  fishes,  travels  the  ice,  goes 
whaling,  is  swept  to  sea  with  the  ice,  captures 
a  devil-fish,  hunts  a  pirates'  cave,  gets  lost  on  a  cliff, 
is  wrecked,  runs  away  to  join  a  sealer,  and  makes 
himself  interesting  in  a  hundred  ways.  He's  a 
good  chum,  in  calm  or  gale,  on  water,  ice  or  shore 
—that's  what  Billy   Topsail  o'  Ruddy  Cove  is. 


By  NORMAN  DUNCAN 

Doctor  Luke  tL Labrador 

l2mo,  Cloth,  $1.50. 


N.  Y.  Evening  Post  i  "  Mr.  Duncan  is  deserving  of  much  praise 
(or  this,  his  first  novel.  ...  In  his  descriptive  passages  Mr.  Duncan  is 
sincere  to  the  smallest  detail.  His  characters  are  painted  in  with 
bold,  wide  strokes.  .  .  .  Unlike  most  first  novels,  'Dr.  Luke'  waxes 
stronger  as  it  progresses," 

Henry  van  Dyke:  "It  is  a  real  book,  founded  on  truth  and 
lighted  with  imagination,  well  worth  reading  and  remembering." 

Review  of  Reviews :  "Mr.  Duncan  has  added  a  new  province  to 
the  realm  of  literature.  This  strong,  beautiful  love  story  moves  with  a 
distinctive  rhythm  that  is  as  fresh  as  it  is  new.  One  of  the  seasons 
two  or  three  best  books." 

Hamilton  W.  Mabie,  in  the  Ladies*  Home  Journal:  "Full  of  in- 
cidents, dramatically  told,  of  the  heroism  and  romance  of  humble  Kfe ; 
strong,  tender,  pathetic ;  one  of  the  most  wholesome  stories  of  the 
season." 

Current  Literature :  "Beyond  a  peradventure,  ranks  as  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  novels  issued  ia  1904.  Stands  out  so  prominently  In 
the  year's  fiction  that  there  is  little  likelihood  of  its  being  over- 
shadowed." 

London  Punch:  "Since  Thackeray  wrote  the  last  word  of  'Colonel 
Newcome,'  nothing  finer  has  been  written  than  the  parting  scene 
where  Skipper  Tommy  Lovejoy,  the  rugged  old  fisherman,  answers 
the  last  call." 

Saturday  Evening  Post :  "There  is  enough  power  in  this  little 
volume  to  magnetize  a  dozen  of  the  popular  novels  of  the  winter." 

Sir  Robert  Bond,  Premier  of  Newfoundland :  "I  shall  prize  the 
book.  It  is  charmingly  written,  and  faithfully  portrays  the  simple 
lives  of  the  noble-hearted  fisher  folk." 

Brooklyn  Eagle:  "Norman  Duncan  has  fulfilled  all  that  was  e»- 
pected  of  him  in  this  story ;  it  establishes  him  beyond  question  as  one 
of  the  strong  masters  of  present-day  fiction." 

SIXTH  EDITION 


THE    HUBBARD   EXPLORING   EXPEDITION 

By  DILLON  WALLACE 

The  Lure  of  the 
Labrador  Wild 

Illustrated  8vo  Cloth  $1.50  net. 

New  York  Sun:  "A  remarkable  story,  and  we  are  much  mistaken 
if  It  does  not  become  a  classic  among  tales  of  exploration." 

Chicago  Evening  Post :  "Two  continents  became  interested  in  the 
stories  that  came  out  of  the  wild  about  the  hardships  of  the  Hubbard 
expedition  Wallace's  story  and  record — they  are  inseparable — pos- 
sesses in  its  naked  truth  more  of  human  interest  than  scores  of  volumes 
of  Imaginative  adventure  and  romance  of  the  wild." 

Review  of  Reviews :  "The  chronicle  of  high,  noble  purpose  and 
achievement  and  it  appeals  to  the  finest,  best,  and  most  virile  in  man." 

Chicago  Record-Herald:  "One  of  the  most  fascinating  books  of 
travel  and  adventure  in  the  annals  of  recent  American  exploration. 
Every  man  or  boy  who  has  ever  heard  the  'red  gods'  of  the  wilder- 
ness calling  will  revel  in  these  graphic  pages,  in  which  the  wild  odor 
of  the  pines,  the  roar  of  rapids,  the  thrill  of  the  chase  and  of  thicken- 
ing dangers  come  vividly  to  the  senses. " 

New  Yerk  Evening  Post :  "The  story  is  told  simply  and  well.  It 
maybe  added  that  for  tragic  adventure  it  has  scarcely  a  parallel  ex- 
cept in  Arctic  exploration . " 

New  York  Evening  Mail:  "A  chronicle  of  the  expedition  from 
first  to  last,  and  a  fine  tribute  to  the  memory  of  Hubbard,  whose  spirit 
struggled  with  such  pitiable  courage  against  the  ravages  of  a  purely 
physical  breakdown    The  story  itself  is  well  told." 

Chicago  Inter-Ocean:  "In  the  records  of  the  explorations  of 
recent  years  there  is  no  more  tragic  story  than  that  of  Hubbard's  at- 
tempt to  cross  the  great  unexplored  and  mysterious  region  of  the 
northeastern  portion  of  the  North  American  continent  Wallace  him- 
self narrowly  escaped  death  in  the  Labrador  wild,  but,  having  been 
rescued,he  has  brought  out  of  that  unknown  land  a  remarkable  story. " 

Brooklyn  Eagle*.  "One  of  the  very  best  stories  of  a  canoe  trip  into 
the  wilds  ever  written." 

FOURTH    EDITION 


By  R.  E.  KNOWLES 
The  Undertow 

A  Tale  of  Both  Sides  of  the  Sea,  $1.50 

Have  you  never  seen  a  strong  swimmer,  with  set  face  and  stiff- 
ening muscles,  fight  for  his  life  with  the  terrible  grip  of  the  under- 
tow—and conquer— only  to  fall  limp  and  almost  lifeless  on  the 
sand,  just  strength  enough  left  to  answer  back  a  smile  to  the  face 
that  looks  so  anxiously  into  his? 

So  Stephen  fought— fought  in  the  old  home,  in  classic  Edin- 
burgh, in  London's  maelstrom,  in  the  city  church,  always  with  his 
ever  present  arch  enemy,  self,  and  won.  His  story  is  that  of  many, 
told  with  fervor  and  pathos,  the  sympathy  that  helps,  not  the 
scorn  that  scorches. 

Mr.  Knowles  has  the  born  story  teller's  gift  of  making  the  com- 
monplaces of  life  appear  in  their  real  magnitude  and  meaning. 
It  is  a  big  theme,  handled  with  masterly  skill  and  in  spite  of  a 
severe  probing  of  our  common  weakness  its  aftermath  is  sweet. 


TENTH   EDITIOM 

St.  Cuthbert's 

A  Parish  Romance,  $1.50 

New  York  Mail :  "Mr.  Knowles  has  a  sense  of  humor  that 
sparkles  in  these  pages,  a  genuine  love  of  humanity,  gentle 
patience  with  its  weakness,  and  a  fine  recognition  of  its  noble 
qualities.    The  book  is  very  human." 

Boston  Herald :  "The  book  breathes  a  spirit  of  tenderness  and 
nobility,  which  is  refreshing  and  inspiring.  Some  of  the  charac- 
ters deserve  a  special  setting,  so  lovingly  has  this  big-hearted, 
whole-souled  man  written  them." 

London  Daily  Chronicle:  "Charming,  full  of  pawky  Scots 
humour  and  that  subtle  pathos  which  seems  a  part  of  Scots  hu- 
mour and  life.  .  .  .  There  is  many  a  smile  to  be  brought  from 
these  pages,  and  not  a  few  tears.  Mr.  Knowles  is  a  new  writer 
who  promises  to  be  %  light  in  the  literary  firmament." 

Edinburgh  Scotsman :  "It  would  be  difficult  to  praise  too 
highly  this  new  work.  There  is  very  little  indeed  in  the  ever- 
growing literature  of  that  school  which  can  excel  Mr.  Knowles' 
sketches  of  the  life  and  doings  in  a  Scot's  kirk  and  a  Scot's 
community." 


GENERAL  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA— BERKELEY 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or  on  the 

date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


11  Nov' 


SAN  D5EGO 
IHTERUBRARY 


APR  25 198769 


SEs 


o2l  1976 


, 


G 


M 


kv/ii*  ' 


LD  21-100ro-l,'54(1887sl6)476 


